


Types of Ink

by OikurooMiyuki



Series: Sunshine Park Academy [3]
Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Alternate Universe, Anal Fingering, Anal Sex, Fluff and Angst, M/M, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Romance, Violence, Yakuza
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-03-03
Updated: 2016-07-30
Packaged: 2018-05-24 14:25:03
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 13
Words: 50,044
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6156501
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/OikurooMiyuki/pseuds/OikurooMiyuki
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>His name was Bokuto, and he was life, he was the sun, and the night. He was the moon in the sky and the electricity of a thunderstorm. He loved every bit of his day, every day. There was never a reason to not be alive or smile, and when there was; he crumbled into pieces of depression for small seconds, letting it all out with almost just as much energy as he did with everything else, just to go back up anew and ready for the next thing. What he wasn’t ready for, though, was Akaashi.</p><p>A man so opposite to him no one would ever predict the outcome of their relationship.</p><p>Akaashi was a soft melody in the summer breeze, the quiet river flowing down a mountain trying not to bother the stones as its small vivid particles passed them by. He was the whisper at night, the cricket in the bushes that you would never find for as you got closer it would quiet down. Bokuto was the loud owl that didn’t mind being watched. He wouldn’t mind interrupting your sleep if that meant singing his song. And when it came to Akaashi, he sure interrupted his quiet cricket song.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The Owl

**Author's Note:**

> Ahhhh!!! I'm so happy I finally got to post the BokuAka fic!! I hope you guys enjoy this chapter and the upcoming ones! For those who have read the other fics in the series this might feel like a re-cap, but please keep in mind that this is entirely from Bokuto's POV and other characters from the other fics might have percieved this entirely different from how Bokuto actually sees them <3333 I hope you enjoy it nonetheless! 
> 
> Oh, also, a song that reminds me a lot of Bokuto would be this one https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cNE9LbeVaQ0 <333 
> 
> Have a wonderful weekend and remember this fic will be updated every Thursday! (Or at least I'll try to haha) 
> 
> http://ahominebaka.tumblr.com/

How can the world be more beautiful than when you watch the seasons go by? The earth, the wind, the sun, the planet itself; they all switch in harmony. A harmony so full of life that will leave you breathless and wondering when did everything go by so fast, and with a common line falling out from your lips ‘it seems like yesterday when…’

His name was Bokuto, and he was life, he was the sun, and the night. He was the moon in the sky and the electricity of a thunderstorm. He loved every bit of his day, every day. There was never a reason to not be alive or smile, and when there was; he crumbled into pieces of depression for small seconds, letting it all out with almost just as much energy as he did with everything else, just to go back up anew and ready for the next thing. What he wasn’t ready for, though, was Akaashi.

A man so opposite to him no one would ever predict the outcome of their relationship.

Akaashi was a soft melody in the summer breeze, the quiet river flowing down a mountain trying not to bother the stones as its small vivid particles passed them by. He was the whisper at night, the cricket in the bushes that you would never find for as you got closer it would quiet down. Bokuto was the loud owl that didn’t mind being watched. He wouldn’t mind interrupting your sleep if that meant singing his song. And when it came to Akaashi, he sure interrupted his quiet cricket song.

During a fresh morning of spring, Bokuto walked his path to work, he always liked to do a different thing every day. No matter how small or big it was, the smallest change in his routine could alter the outcome of an entire month, maybe even a year, and who knows? A life-changing situation could be seen.

That morning in particular, Bokuto decided to stop by a cafeteria he sometimes went to. Not a particular fan of their coffee since it always made him feel more anxious and energetic than he already felt in a normal state, but he always enjoyed the ambiance of the room. The way it didn’t feel like just another Starbucks place, or how it was always cheerful to recognize one or two faces no matter how little he went there.

To his surprise, that morning life decided to make a change as well and not have the usual staff that Bokuto was so well known around. Instead, the entirety of people that he knew were gone and had been replaced by complete strangers. Feeling like it was too late to go back out, he walked towards the counter to place his order.

“Good morning!” He said cheerfully. He wasn’t going to let this unexpected event ruin his day if anything he was going to let himself flow with the changes life had made and see where the river took him to.

“Good morning, what would you like to order?” A soft voice spoke from the other side.

Bokuto, who had been looking at the board full of names of drinks looked down at the man and felt the air escape his lungs along with the blood rush down to his hip. He had in front of him the most beautiful man he had ever lied eyes on. His messy black hair falling everywhere, his tender lips waiting in silence, his careful and quiet eyes watching Bokuto’s expression, even his cheeks formed the most perfect face.

Bokuto’s eyes moved down to his clothes, he was covered up to his neck with a thick turtleneck, his arms invisible behind the same long sleeved shirt, and his hands enveloped with white fine gloves. Somehow, and in some strange way, Bokuto could feel his mind and heart immediately falling in love.

Forget about appearances, this had nothing to do with his beautiful face and hair (since it was all he could practically see), this had to do with the aura this man had around him. Bokuto tried to desperately find a word for him, a word that described him entirely and not only him but the way he felt about this man…

_Mystery._

Bokuto fell in love with the mystery right before his eyes, and there was no other way around it. He knew that, and he was okay with that.

“Sir?” The man insisted, his voice sounding like almost the song the birds sang every morning.

What Bokuto wasn’t okay with was the way he felt paralyzed around this man. He cleared his throat and looked at the other waiters who had also stopped to look back at Bokuto.

“Uhh… I’d like a chocolate Frappuccino.” He mumbled. Too low. Too low for his usual tone.

“Anything to eat?” The man asked carelessly without looking up from the machine.

“No, thank you,” Bokuto replied, quickly taking out the money from his wallet and handing it to the hands wrapped in beautiful white gloves.

After a few minutes of waiting, he grabbed his coffee and rushed outside the cafeteria as quickly as he could. His heart beating as fast as ever, and his mind trying to adjust to the reality of the situation. Quick steps, one after the other, the cold coffee melting in his hand and freezing it along with the crushed ice inside of it.

He soon arrived at the entrance of the Academy he worked at but didn’t notice Iwaizumi who was walking just in front of him. With clumsiness, he tried to avoid colliding with him, but Iwaizumi was quick enough to move out of the way before a catastrophe could take place.

“Wow, careful Bokuto,” He said grumpily as he opened the door for Sunshine Park Academy.

Bokuto was the pre-school teacher in said academy, and he loved every bit of his job. He couldn’t be anywhere or picture himself doing anything else that didn’t involve teaching tiny humans, as he liked to call them. He adored them, considered them deities of this world, too precious to not respect their innocence and imagination. He cherished them and thought of them better than grownups. Somehow, in his mind, grownups were boring people who had been broken by time and life. Children, on the other hand, were bright and colorful, they were what he aspired to be.

Iwaizumi, the grumpy cute man in front of him who barely looked up from his phone and if he did he had a frown plastered on his forehead, was the Kindergarten teacher. Bokuto could easily hate him, he was the boring type of grown up he so much avoided. They had completely different personalities and they had nothing in common. Except for one thing; the love and respect for tiny humans. That’s why Bokuto respected him as well and considered him one of his best friends. As boring and grumpy as Iwaizumi was outside of the four walls that made Sunshine Park Academy, he was the embodiment of a sweet, happy, and very loving person when he was around his students. Even sometimes Bokuto wondered if his grumpiness was just a façade to confront the horribleness of the real world…

“Guys! You won’t guess what happened to me today!” Bokuto spoke eagerly as he greeted everyone. He could feel his chest about to burst, he wanted to tell his co-workers everything and anything, but he wasn’t sure how they would react. He was about to openly admit he liked men, but his brain was working too fast for him to even stop the words from falling down his mouth.

“Oh boy, what happened to you? Probably a big mess, knowing what a disaster you are.” Iwaizumi said frowning, but almost chuckling. Bokuto ignored him, he knew Iwaizumi liked men just as much as he did and he wasn’t going to care about his opinion. If anything, coming out now could help his friend out in the future.

Bokuto laughed loudly, “Well, I went to the same cafeteria I always go to, right? But just as I was about to order my coffee I noticed they had changed almost the entirety of the staff, and when I looked up to see who was taking my order… I saw… The most beautiful man in the world.” He said while wiping away fake tears. He always liked to act dramatically when in serious situations. Through the years he had learned that this behavior did the same thing it did for adults when a child did something with a dramatic attitude; they laughed and although they took it as seriously as they were meant to, they didn’t use the seriousness that involved the gloominess of a ‘we need to talk’ type of line.

Daichi, who was one of the elementary school teachers, laughed and shook his head “Seriously? That’s your magical morning event?” he rose an eyebrow. Bokuto liked Daichi. He thought of him to be like a father to everyone. He had this sort of attitude that made you want to make him proud. Plus he was handsome. He never took Bokuto any less seriously than anyone else would have, not even when they met. First encounters tend to be a mocking parade for Bokuto, and when it came to job interviews they were usually followed by ‘are we seriously going to hire this dude?” questions. But Daichi never spoke those words, on the contrary, he was more than on board to welcome him as the Pre-School teacher.

Bokuto looked at him surprised and then rushed to him, “You don’t understand!" He grabbed Daichi by the arms, "He was so beautiful… Like an angel!" Bokuto waved his hand dramatically in the air as if he was pointing at the sky. "I need to know more about him! I need to find out his name, number, address, blood type, everything!”

“Whoa, slow down there you psycho…” Iwaizumi stopped him trying to hold back the laughter. "Maybe you should start by getting his name, and then we could see other options,” He said trying to reassure him. He was right, though. He had to calm down, to think things thoroughly. He couldn’t take a false step here.

He moved to Iwaizumi, and trying to change the subject he spoke again, “This must be a thing of the spring, the world wants my love life to blossom like a cherry tree!” Bokuto opened his arms widely.

“Sure thing, now the world is conspiring to turn you into a plant. I’m glad to hear that, maybe that way we won’t have to put up with you anymore.” Iwaizumi groaned and shook his head.

Bokuto nudged him on the shoulder, he was too much of a fan of annoying Iwaizumi. "Well, we'll talk about your inner cherry tree blossoming once you've found the right person."

Iwaizumi made a weird face "I'm not sure what that's supposed to mean, but I also don't want to find out..."

Suga, the other elementary school teacher, and Daichi laughed loudly but Bokuto didn’t care. He only wanted to know the quietness of that mystery. What soul hid behind those beautiful intense eyes? He needed to see more of his skin, his thoughts, to hear more of his voice and the sound his breath and heart made. If he could, he even wanted to hear the blood rushing through his veins. Bokuto had found the embodiment of beauty, the poetry made man.

Bokuto pointed at Iwaizumi, “Tomorrow I’ll get his name!” He said decisively. "You'll see!"

Iwaizumi nodded and sighed "Sure thing, I'm sure you will..." He said tauntingly since Iwaizumi enjoyed nagging Bokuto as much as he did.

“Good morning everyone”, A female voice surprised them from behind. Their female boss was standing by the hallway door. Although Bokuto found her to be a beautiful woman, he was glad she wasn’t part of the teaching staff. She lacked the delicacy to be around tiny humans. Sure, she was a parenting figure for them, if Daichi gave the vibes of being the father you wanted to make proud, Kiyoko was the mother you wanted to bring love and good grades to.

“Kiyoko! I have fallen in love!” Bokuto said to her with a loud voice. He considered her to be one of his best friends just like the rest of his co-workers, and he knew the news wouldn’t surprise her one bit. If there was anyone at the office that spent the most amount of time with her, it was him.

“Who’s the poor bastard?” She asked in a monotone voice and walking towards them. Bokuto tried not to laugh, of course, she was going to try to make fun of him, but she knew Bokuto wouldn’t make such bold announcement unless it was true.

“He doesn’t know yet, but it seems he’ll find out tomorrow once he goes to get his coffee.” Daichi pointed out with a chuckle.

“Oh, well I hope this doesn’t imply you’ll come in late,” She said with a frown, “By the way,” She turned around and continued to talk to Daichi. Bokuto appreciated she didn’t draw any more attention to the topic. All he wanted was to let it out from his chest, let the world know he was ready for the free fall this man meant to him. He was a firm believer in love at first sight although he had never experienced it, but he was a believer in anything and everything. Not thinking something is real because of the chances of it happening being slim seemed far too reasonable to be really reasonable.

 

\------

 

“Not believing in fairies is just as crazy as believing in numbers that build statistics. The world was built in odds, the universe, men, and the mind itself is far too complicated for us to wrap it around on what’s real or not. How do we know that what we see is true and that there isn’t something out there that our human eyes can’t see? We know there are sounds we can’t hear, why not the same for seeing? Faith and reality are two different things, but when it comes to reality, I find it to be too abstract to be real.” He found himself mumbling to one of his precious students.

“Boku-chan,” Natsu whispered to him. She was the most beautiful soul in the entire building. Her heart was pure, her energy was full, and she was the embodiment of everything Bokuto believed in. “I don’t know what satistis means,” She said trying to repeat the word.

Bokuto tilted his head, “I’d try to explain to you the meaning of it, but I don’t even know how. I hope you never come near one of them!”

Natsu frowned, “Why? Are they mean?”

Bokuto frowned as well, thinking, “Well… I wouldn’t say bad… But definitely scary.”

Natsu’s eyes widened, “And old people have to fight satistis??”

Bokuto nodded, his eyes closed as if he felt sad about this, “Terrible fights…”

Without opening his eyes, he could hear Natsu running away, and he immediately let out a loud sigh, aware of what was coming next. Natsu’s voice resounded all over the hallway as she rushed towards probably the elementary school classroom, those students were old people for her, “Satistis! Fight the satistis!” Her voice loud and encouraging.

 

\----

 

Days passed, well more like months, and Bokuto continued to go to the cafeteria, not altering it from his routine. Every morning, even Sundays, he walked in at the same hour, froze in front of that beautiful man, and ordered his drink. At some point, he even stopped saying out loud his order, and much to his surprise, they had it ready for him. He didn’t know what that meant.

No matter how decisive he found himself to be every morning, he was unable to speak a coherent word in front of that man. All he could do was watch him, observe him, and then run away once he had the coffee (he rarely even drank) in his hand.

Every day he complained about this to his co-workers, he groaned in agony by his own weakness. He always knew he was weak to the beauty of mystery or talent, to the cheerfulness of the difference marked by someone’s aura and not by simply following a ‘type’ of taste. He tended to become over-focused with the things and people he loved, and he loved with the pure fiery passion. Except this time the passion was so great, he seemed dully unable to move or speak to the man.

“Why don’t I go with you someday? Maybe I can help you out? Be your wingman?” Iwaizumi asked mid-conversation, finally making Bokuto feel like there was a chance. He didn’t need someone to hold his hand through the process or ask the man for his name, but he knew he needed the pressure. Someone watching his every step and that person being Iwaizumi made it so he wouldn’t only watch his every step, but probably roll his eyes at every word and chuckle at the clumsiness of his unspoken nervousness. He needed that, oddly enough. The pressure and the need to prove he could do it.

 

\---

 

Bokuto waited in line, his friend Iwaizumi sat in one of the corners of the cafeteria, dangling on his phone. Bokuto could feel the excitement building up from his inside, the fireworks gathering in his chest preparing for the big explosion of emotions that would take place once he saw the face of his beautiful barista. He wanted to see him and he was ready to talk to him. Ask his name. That was all he had to do.

“Sir, what would-“ The man stopped, “Oh, I’m so sorry, I didn’t know you were coming in again at this time, I would have had your coffee ready as always…” The barista looked at his friend in charge of making the coffee.

Bokuto could feel the dryness of his mouth stopping him from speaking a word. He gulped and shook his head.

“I’m for my friend.” He stuttered the words, “I mean, I’m here for my friend.”

The barista frowned, “I… I don’t follow… You don’t want your coffee?”

Bokuto shook his head, “No” He took a deep breath, trying to relax and feel himself falling through the sky, letting himself lose and not try to fight his own emotions. “I came with a friend, he’s the only one who wants coffee,” He explained in a more proper tone.

“Oh.” The barista hesitated, “And what will his order be?”

Bokuto tried to remember what Iwaizumi had asked him, he had been too nervous to even listen. “Iced Mocha.” He finally replied.

The barista looked back at the machine and operated it in silence for a few minutes. “And are you sure you don’t want anything? The usual? Maybe something different this time?”

Bokuto looked down, fiddling with the bills of money that he had between his fingers. Letting the nervousness evolve in his chest, he looked up back at the barista. “Yeah… I was wondering… What’s your name?”

The barista stared at Bokuto for a long while before chuckling loudly. The most beautiful sound Bokuto had ever heard, showing an even more astonishing glimpse of his favorite smile. Without saying a word the barista slowly moved his hand up to his chest, his index finger, whitened by the precious delicate glove, pointed at a small plaque on his shirt. Akaashi.

All this time… His name had been right in front of him, but Bokuto had been too busy observing the beauty of his face to even notice the small shining plaque. He felt like an idiot. He wanted to bury himself as deeply as the love he felt. He wanted to hide, and although he could feel the blood rushing to his face, he tried to stay composed.

“Well, it took you a year to at least talk to me. That’s something.” Akaashi spoke once and for all in a nonchalant tone.

“Excuse me?” Bokuto asked him feeling an even deeper mixture of confusion and interest.

Akaashi shrugged, “Every day you came in and took a deep breath when you saw me as if you had a long speech ready for me. First you would stutter the words that formed the equation of what seemed to be your order, and then you would quiet down into a terrific silence that made me giggle from the inside. I noticed it was a complete torture for you, so I decided to have your order ready for when you arrived instead, maybe making you once and for all blurt out the words of that beautiful speech I’m sure you had ready all these months.” He took the money from Bokuto’s hands and began to operate the machine again.

Bokuto remained silent, not only because he was speechless after this big revelation, but also because he wanted to kidnap that man and make him speak further. His words, his voice, everything was so beautiful. Man-made, yet it felt like a shiver of God’s true creation. “Well, if your name is not an impressive enough question, then may I have your number?” He knew it was a bold move, but he had to set aside all shyness in order to not let this perfect man escape him.

Akaashi looked back at Bokuto, giving him his change back. No chuckle, no surprise, no shyness. Almost as if he had just ordered another drink, except not. There was still a hint of tension. A hint large enough for the rest of Akaashi’s colleagues to turn around and look back at the exchange that was taking place between them.

“I don’t know about that,” Akaashi replied barely even blinking.

“Why not?” Bokuto quickly added, almost as a dare.

Akaashi shrugged. “Took you all this time to gather up the courage, I think I can offer you something better.”

Bokuto frowned, “Like what?”

Akaashi slowly grinned, his eyes forming the flames of desire that Bokuto could feel in his own chest. “My shift just ended. You could give me a minute, and then we could get out of here.”

Bokuto tilted his head and looked back at Iwaizumi who continued to sit in the corner, staring down at his phone. He looked back at Akaashi. “I’ll wait for you over there.” He grabbed Iwaizumi’s drink, and without saying another word, he walked towards his friend.

Bokuto flopped down across from him on the opposite chair, feeling as if he had just walked through a dream and danced among the Gods from heaven itself. He had never been big on poetry, regardless of how poetic his views in life were, but this man made him want to recite every sentence as a verse.

“Well, that was quick.” Iwaizumi chuckled. Bokuto knew his chuckle hid something, a worry from what was happening between him and his phone, but he wasn’t about to intrude that thought. If his friend didn’t feel like sharing, he was not going to force him.

Bokuto acknowledged the pinkness of his cheeks, the blood continued to rush through his body in excitement, “Yeah…” He handed Iwaizumi his coffee, trying not to look back at the counter. He was desperate to catch another glimpse of that astonishingly looking man, but he didn’t want to make it so damn obvious.

“…Please tell me you asked for his name?” Iwaizumi interrupted his thoughts, his friend rose an eyebrow probably fearing for a negative answer.

Bokuto nodded quickly, “Yeah yeah…” His words came out in a faint despair, by the judge of the sound it felt as if he was in shock, but deep down he knew he was mesmerized in thought.

“So?” His friend interrupted him again, expectant and excited.

“Oh, his name is Akaashi…” Bokuto said distractedly. The name itself sent shivers down his spine, almost as if a gentle breeze had passed by his nape, leaving his skin aroused and his mouth wet.

“Is everything okay?” Iwaizumi asked. Although Bokuto found his friend to be considerably blind to social queues and most importantly, to obvious situations, this time he seemed to be cunningly sharp.

“Oh yeah yeah… I just…” Bokuto started but didn’t finish. He glanced back to the counter, unable to contain himself. Much to his disappointment, his precious Akaashi had vanished and another waiter had taken over the orders.

“Bokuto?” Iwaizumi after looking back at the counter as well.

“I think… I think I have a date with him? Right now?” Bokuto frowned, although he probably seemed confused, he felt more overwhelmed by the idea than anything.

Iwaizumi hesitated, “A date?”

Bokuto shrugged, “He told me his shift is over and to wait for him…” He explained without looking back at his friend. He wanted this dream feeling to never end. To continue down this path to the garden of roses that he had dreamed of for so long.

Iwaizumi began to laugh loudly, “Say no more, I’m leaving, I’m leaving. Good luck!” Bokuto looked at him his eyes melting with the sole thought of being alone with Akaashi. “Don’t worry, everything will go alright.” He tried to reassure his friend while putting his coat on. What a useless thing to say when Bokuto himself knew how well things would go. He always trusted his gut, and his gut was telling him that day was going to be perfect.

Bokuto nodded hesitantly but didn’t get to say anything else. Iwaizumi looked at the staff room’s door and quickly left the building, which translated into _Akaashi is coming_. Bokuto looked back at the direction his friend had looked at before leaving, and indeed, his beautiful barista was there, approaching him. Wrapped in his beautiful black tight coat, his gloves making a contrast with their whiteness. Another perfect harmony between his skin and hair.

"Shall we go then?" Akaashi opened the door for him. 

Bokuto followed him obediently and unsure of what to say, "...Where are we going?" 

Akaashi grinned, "My place." 


	2. The Cricket

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Akaashi turned to him, “You scared I might be a yakuza?”
> 
> Bokuto tried to read his face, he didn’t look the type to be part of the underworld crime, but then again he had never met anyone from that side of Japan so how could he identify one? Either way, he didn't seem to be joking either.
> 
> Without waiting for a reply, Akaashi continued to walk, his steps quick almost making Bokuto lose sight of him. They arrived at a small alley, the buildings shabby and dirty, and the music from the nearby bars loud enough to keep anyone up.
> 
> “We are here. Please don’t make a noise, I don’t want my roommate to know I got back from work.” Akaashi quickly added as he stepped towards an almost broken and heavily chained door.
> 
> Bokuto opened his mouth to ask why, but it was too late. Akaashi had opened the door and stepped inside, he held the door open for Bokuto, and he hesitantly followed, praying he wasn’t entering some mob nest.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What is this?! An entire week being on time with the chapter deadlines?! haha~  
> (hopefully, I didn't just jinx it with this joke haha...)
> 
> Anyways, thank you so much for the support the first chapter has gotten so far! It melts my heart and makes my day to see how much you guys are enjoying my stories <333 I hope I continue to make everyone happy and proud because writing this really helps me get through life!  
> I hope you guys enjoy this chapter, and I hope you're all having a wonderful day. 
> 
> There's a lot of hoping in my notes lately... Oh well, enjoy! <3~
> 
> http://ahominebaka.tumblr.com/

Bokuto took quick steps, his hands in his pockets. He observed the man next to him, studied every inch of his face as they walked along. His soft black hair shuffled with the wind, his dark coat covered his body, and his precious skin shone with the barely setting sun in the sky.

“Stop watching me.” Akaashi spoke, his face emotionless as he looked around the streets.

Bokuto tensed up, but tried to laugh it off, “Why do you think I was watching you?”

“I can feel it.” Akaashi turned left without warning him, making Bokuto quickly switch directions.

Bokuto sighed and continued to walk, he didn’t know what to say and he could feel his heartbeat racing each time he processed what was happening. He was walking through the streets of Tokyo with the cute barista he had a crush on… And they were going to his place…

He bit his lower lip, letting his imagination run wild. His hands shuffled in his coat, he was trying to contain himself. He wanted to know everything about Akaashi, bombard him with questions about his life, about his past, his present, and wonders about the future… But most importantly, he wanted to know if they were walking to Akaashi’s place for the one reason he couldn’t shake off from his mind.

They crossed the dirty bridge with the ‘Roppongi’ letters engraved on the sides, and soon, the ambiance of the streets shifted to that of the area. They were surrounded by loud bars and dark nightclubs. People wearing all kinds of costumes and clothes hung around laughing and talking loudly, some drunk, others simply having a fun time. Akaashi ignored them all, making his way through the people with ease, some even recognized him and waved in his direction, but Akaashi ignored them as well.

“So… You live in Roppongi?” Bokuto asked, his voice shakier than he intended.

Akaashi turned to him, “You scared I might be a yakuza?”

Bokuto tried to read his face, he didn’t look the type to be part of the underworld crime, but then again he had never met anyone from that side of Japan so how could he identify one? Either way, he didn't seem to be joking either.

Without waiting for a reply, Akaashi continued to walk, his steps quick almost making Bokuto lose sight of him. They arrived at a small alley, the buildings shabby and dirty, and the music from the nearby bars loud enough to keep anyone up.

“We are here. Please don’t make a noise, I don’t want my roommate to know I got back from work.” Akaashi quickly added as he stepped towards an almost broken and heavily chained door.

Bokuto opened his mouth to ask why, but it was too late. Akaashi had opened the door and stepped inside, he held the door open for Bokuto, and he hesitantly followed, praying he wasn’t entering some mob nest.

They walked through a hallway with its walls crumbling down and covered in graffiti, the doors of the apartments almost as heavily chained as the front door of the building, and loud music and voices coming out from the inside. They went up the rusty stairs, Bokuto held himself to the dirty walls in fear that the ground itself would crumble down at his feet and ditch him into a hole. Akaashi walked indifferently, yet silently.

Finally, after reaching the end of the hallway of the second floor, they arrived at the front door of an equally disastrous apartment, with loud rock/punk music resounding from the inside. Akaashi turned to Bokuto and put his index fingers against his lips, letting Bokuto know he had to be completely silent. Not a hard thing to do considering the crazy volume of the music.

Akaashi opened the door and stepped inside, letting Bokuto follow before he closed the door slowly and as quietly as possible. The crossed a small hallway that gave way to the messy kitchen, and arrived at an even messier living room, filled with various instruments, papers, video-game consoles, anything and everything a college student could dream of, they had it scattered around the room. There were 4 doors at the sides, and the front view were big dirty windows that let in the neon lights from the opposite building signs.

Akaashi carefully pointed to the left, letting Bokuto know they had to cross the living room, avoiding the two doors on the right (one of them being the source of the loud music). Bokuto nodded and they both began to walk with slow steps until they reached one of the doors. Akaashi opened it, and walked inside, letting Bokuto in. The bedroom was considerably empty was more organized than the rest of the apartment, except for a few clothes scattered on the bed and floor, there was only a broken closet, a small bed with its bedside table, and a cute desk with a few papers on it.

Akaashi closed the door and sighed, “Okay, we are safe now…”

Bokuto hesitated, looking around unsure of what to do, “Is your roommate an ass or something?”

Akaashi chuckled and shook his head, “No, but I have my reasons to avoid him tonight. You can sit or do whatever you want, I’m just going to get changed.” He walked towards the broken closet.

“Changed?” Bokuto asked confused while awkwardly sitting on the bed.

 Akaashi turned to him as he took off his gloves, “My job requires I cover most of my skin. It's uncomfortable to be like this, so I try to dress like this as little as possible.”

“Why would you…” Bokuto began to ask, but as he glanced down at Akaashi’s hand, his voice disappeared and his jaw dropped.

His skin was dark, covered in ink, tracing in all kinds of shapes and forms through his fingers, down to the back of his hand and towards his wrist. Unable to contain himself, Bokuto rose to his feet and walked towards him, carefully extending his hand.

“…Can I?” He asked in a whisper. Akaashi hesitated, but carefully placed his hand on Bokuto’s. He examined them carefully, his jaw almost on the ground from the amazement. “Do you have more??”

Akaashi chuckled again, “I think by the way I’m dressed it’s obvious I do.”

Bokuto tried to hide his embarrassment at such stupid question, he carefully sat back down on the bed feeling like a spectator.

Akaashi began to slowly unbutton his coat, sliding off from his arms and letting it fall to the ground. As he began to pull up the turtleneck sweater, his white V-neck shirt moved up as well uncovering a heavily tattooed stomach. Once it fell back down and Akaashi dropped the sweater on the ground, Bokuto could see the different patterns and designs in his arms and neck, some colorful and bright, others entirely black and white.

He carefully reached out and caressed Akaashi’s skin, trailing his fingers through his arms almost wanting to leave his fingerprints in every tattoo. “You’re beautiful…” He whispered in awe.

Akaashi looked down at him in surprise, but his eyes moved away as his cheeks turned slightly pink. He let Bokuto examine them for long minutes.

“So…” He cleared his throat, “Are you…” He hesitated to finish the sentence.

“Am I a yakuza?” Akaashi finished the question for him, his face a mixture of amusement and curiosity.

Bokuto nodded slowly.

“What makes you think I could be one?” He asked in a soft whisper as he leaned forward, putting his right knee on the bed, leaving his thigh to caress Bokuto’s right leg.

Bokuto gulped as he leaned back, his heartbeat racing as he looked up to Akaashi’s face, his perfect expression accompanied by his black hair falling and caressing his skin, his eyes piercing Bokuto’s seductive and inviting like the Devil’s. “I… I guess your tattoos… And… You live in Roppongi… A place notorious for the often Yakuza activity…”

Akaashi laughed, a sound Bokuto hadn’t heard yet which made him blush even more, “You sound like the news report… _A place notorious for the Yakuza activity_ …” He shook his head and moved his thumb against Bokuto’s lower lip, caressing it carefully, “What if I was, though?”

Bokuto let out the air, his body trembling in a mixture of fear and excitement, “I don’t know…” He mumbled lost in Akaashi’s aura.

“You don’t know?” He rose an eyebrow, “You should be more careful and know who you get yourself involved with…” He moved his other knee on the bed, sitting on Bokuto’s lap.

Bokuto slowly nodded, hypnotized by Akaashi’s delicate movements “I know… But… I don’t want to be careful around you…”

Akaashi moved forward, his lips almost touching Bokuto’s, he stopped in what at first seemed hesitation, but then clearly became a taunting back and forth, making Bokuto suffer from the need to kiss him for the first time.

Bokuto moved his hands, he wrapped his arms around Akaashi’s hip, pulling him closer. The room silent, and their minds oblivious to the outside noise. They remained still for long seconds, their lips brushing but not touching entirely, their breaths mixing together, and their skin touching. Unable to repress the need, Bokuto moved his right hand up to Akaashi’s head, and as he buried his fingers through his black silky hair, he closed the small distance between their lips.

They kissed, their lips moving together in perfect harmony, sometimes Akaashi moving forward and kissing him rougher, other times Bokuto biting him carefully and tightening his grip on his perfect hair. A dance full of lust, a silent conversation filled with need, the accumulated desire of watching each other in the cafeteria, the trembles of the tightened muscles as they approached, and the softly stuttered whispers spoken when they met… It all was summarized to that perfect kiss.

Carried away and in what seemed silent mutual agreement, Bokuto pulled up Akaashi’s shirt, revealing his heavily tattooed chest. He took a few seconds to admire the art in his skin, but it wasn’t long until he needed more of his lips. Akaashi put his arms on Bokuto’s shoulders, letting his hands loose on his back.

Suddenly, the music from the opposite room stopped, making Akaashi whisper softly against Bokuto’s lips, “Shit…”

They heard a door opening and being slammed shut again, followed by loud and excited steps that rushed to Akaashi’s door, “Akaaashiiiii!!!!!!” Someone yelled from the other side, getting closer.

Akaashi rested his forehead against Bokuto’s before he sighed, “I apologize in advance.”

Just as he spoke the words, the door burst open, revealing a short man on the other side. His body containing a few tattoos here and there, his hair bright orange and a piercing in his lower lip, “Akaa-” He froze at the door.

Akaashi moved from Bokuto’s lap and sat on the bed to his side, “Bokuto, this is my roommate, Hinata.”

Hinata looked at both with his mouth open but remaining silent, and his big brown eyes wide open, “Bokuto? Cafeteria Bokuto?” He finally said.

Akaashi slowly nodded, “He finally asked me for my name today.” He said with a dull tone as he picked up his shirt and put it on again.

Bokuto hesitated, but then a lightbulb went on in his brain, “Hinata?! Hinata… Shōyō?! As in… Hinata Natsu?!”

Hinata hesitated, and then frowned, “Natsu?” After a few seconds, he gasped loudly, “Bokuto! Boku-chan! Natsu!”

Akaashi looked at them both and then sighed, “I feel like I’m either missing a big part of this conversation, or you guys are using a special code or something.”

Hinata turned to Akaashi in amazement, “Bokuto! He’s my sister’s teacher! Natsu!”

Akaashi rose an eyebrow, “I thought your sister was a toddler?”

Hinata and Bokuto nodded together, “I’m a pre-school teacher.” Bokuto finally explained.

Akaashi looked at him in surprise, “Oh… That’s interesting…” He turned to Hinata who was still shocked and excited by the realization, “What did you come here for, Hinata?” He asked while pulling out a pack of cigarettes from his drawer and lighting one.

Bokuto turned to Hinata and studied both men, feeling overwhelmed by how difference the ambiance in Akaashi's life was in comparison to his own. He was used to pastel colors, cute toys, and cheerful smiles... Akaashi's world was entirely different, almost like magic. 

“Ah…” He scratched the back of his head with a foolish grin, “Tonight… The concert…”

Akaashi rose an eyebrow but didn’t say a word, he silently exhaled the smoke.

“Uhmm… Seki confirmed he won’t be able to come… I already took the day off, and we heard there will be scouts all over the place… Please!!!” He dropped to his knees and began to beg.

“No.” Akaashi answered without hesitation.

“Akaashiiii!!! Pleaseeee!!!” Hinata looked up to him while pouting, “Just this one time! The last time I ask this of you!”

“That’s what you said last time.” He replied in annoyance.

“I know! But this time, there’ll be scouts! Come on… You know I can’t afford to take days off for nothing, and if my boss sees I don’t show up with the band he’ll think I was lying.” Hinata replied from the ground.

Akaashi sighed, “Well how is that my problem? You should have made sure Seki was okay with the concert.”

“PLEASE! Please… I can't do this without a guitar player...” Hinata begged, “I… I won’t bother you for a week!”

“Make it a month and I’ll think about it.” Akaashi replied.

Hinata sighed and nodded, “Fine, a month. I won’t even call out your name.”

Akaashi thought about it for a while, and then nodded, “Okay, now go.”

Hinata stood up with a big smile, “Thank you! Boku-chan can come too!” The way his face lightened, the energy, and the voice he used to say Boku-chan was a 100% Natsu.

Bokuto chuckled and turned to Akaashi, hearing the door close after Hinata, “So you’re in a band?”

Akaashi looked at him and leaned back against the wall, putting the ashtray to his side, “No, he is in a band with two other dudes, I just know how to play the guitar so I help him out sometimes.”

Bokuto widened his eyes, “That’s so cool! So you want to be a musician?!”

Akaashi chuckled and shook his head, “I don’t; I never did. Music is not my thing.”

Bokuto frowned, “Then what is your thing? Unless you really work in a crime organization.”

Akaashi snorted as he inhaled the smoke from the cigarette, “Do you really think I’d be serving coffees if I did?”

He tilted his head, “I guess not… But I wouldn’t mind if you did.” He looked at the ground but he could see Akaashi’s eyes shift with surprise before looking away with his cheeks turning slightly pink.

“I’m a writer.” He finally said, “Or well, at least trying to.”

Bokuto turned to him surprised, “Seriously?! That’s even cooler!”

He sighed and put out the cigarette, “Well it’s not like I’ve gotten anywhere with what I’ve written so far.” He shrugged, “People like me don’t really get out of this.”

Bokuto frowned, “People like you?”

“Me, Hinata, his band mates… We all have crappy jobs, I work as a barista, and Hinata is a male host in a club… It’s not that easy for people like us to get out of the shit.” He said clearly trying to shrug it off.

Bokuto hesitated before carefully grabbing his hand, “I think if you really meant that or if that was true… You wouldn’t even be trying.” His voice was low as he slowly tried to pick the right words, “I think you’re beautiful, not only physically, but personally… You’re fascinating and something completely out of my league…”

“Out of your league??” Akaashi said trying to hold back the laughter, “You do realize a pre-school teacher with a perfect cute life is saying that to someone like me??”

Bokuto frowned, “Okay, first of all, my life is not perfect and cute just because I'm a pre-school teacher,” He laughed, “And second of all, yes I am saying this to you. I really like you.”

Akaashi flinched and moved away his hand, “You do know this is just a physical thing, right? I don’t do dating or getting close to people.” His tone harsher and more defensive than before.

Bokuto felt his cheeks turning red along with his chest tightening, he didn’t know what this meant for Akaashi, and although he felt oddly crushed by these words, he didn’t know what he wanted from this either. But the idea of a chance definitely sounded better than just a physical thing. He slowly nodded, “Am I not allowed to like you anyways? Or am I supposed to be an asshole because we aren’t close?”

Akaashi hesitated, his eyes mixed with surprise and gratitude, “I… Yeah, I guess you’re right.” He frowned, “I’m just more used to jerks.”

Bokuto rose an eyebrow, “Would you prefer I act like one?”

He thought about it for a while before shaking his head.

“Good.” Bokuto sighed, “Because I honestly don’t want to.”

Akaashi shuffled with the pack of cigarettes in his hands, “So you want to come to the concert?” He asked without looking up.

Bokuto studied his expression before slowly smiling, “Sure.”

He hated thinking Akaashi only considered this a one-night thing or a simple physical activity, he didn’t want to be with someone who disregarded the feelings or the need to make each other feel good and instead only focused on the selfish needs. He perfectly understood the human need to do something like that, and if it would have been anyone else, he would have probably followed the lead and taken a selfish point of view… But it was Akaashi, it was his cute barista, his mysterious tattooed writer… He had to have him or, at least, try to…

It was then, in that very bed, looking into Akaashi’s perfect eyes, in the middle of Roppongi, in a shabby broken down apartment and under the neon lights of the clubs opposite to the windows that he knew… He knew he was in love with Akaashi. Through and through his heart was his, and one way or another he had to make Akaashi the man in his life. He promised himself he would do anything he could, from cheesy moves like flowers and chocolates, to deep meaningful acts that would show how he truly felt. Anything, to show Akaashi that he deserved the world, and although he was nothing but a mere human, he would make it his goal to make him the happiest man in the world.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you guys are liking how different this fic is in comparison to the rest of the series. There will definitely be a bigger difference as the series drifts further and further from the Academy towards the outside people and their different lifestyles. I have a lot planned and a lot of pairs for fics, so I truly hope you guys are enjoying this enough for me to continue and post the upcoming fics! 
> 
> What do you guys think of Akaashi so far? And what about Hinata? hahaha I've been dying to write this chapter because I'm a sucker for bad boy tattooed Akaashi and male host/musician Hinata. 
> 
> Anyways, feel free to tell me what you guys loved, hated, or think will happen between this two young lovers. Don't forget you can talk to me on tumblr too, and to check out the rest of fics in the series! <333 
> 
> http://ahominebaka.tumblr.com/


	3. The Concert

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Noya turned to him, “Oh no, I meant you’re his new sex-toy!” He said without noticing how offensive that term was.
> 
> “Noya, please…” Asahi lifted his hands trying to reach for the short man, “You’re being rude…” He looked like he was in pain or embarrassed.
> 
> “He’s right.” Akaashi added cuttingly looking at Bokuto, “Right?”
> 
> Bokuto rose an eyebrow and chuckled, “Right. I just like Akaashi, so I don’t mind how he sees me for as long as I’m the one that has him.” He replied daringly.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well who knew writing this chapter would be so easy???   
> I have to say, using Dj Krush to write Akaashi is by far the best thing that has happened to me hahaha https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yE8bvOJ-wy8 In case you're wondering what I'm talking about, here you have the proof. 
> 
> Also, I'm not sure I'll be able to get Glassed View and the next The Odd Mix chapter done, I have a tattoo appointment tomorrow morning for my arm and it might be hard to type after that, but I'll definitely do my best. Besides my personal life is still a freaking pile of Jenga pieces crumbling down hahaha But you'll have your chapters asap. In the meantime I'd like to remind the possible list of upcoming fics! those being; Kuroo/Kenma, Ushijima/Shirabu, Kageyama/Hinata, and Kiyoko/Yachi. Feel free to suggest.
> 
> Hope you guys enjoy it! <333
> 
> http://ahominebaka.tumblr.com/

They walked through the loud messy streets of Roppongi. Hinata eagerly bounced around with every step trying to contain his big nervous smile. Akaashi walked silently, barely looking around and ignoring everyone that greeted him except for a few nods he returned here and there through the long line of bars and clubs. Bokuto watched both men in front of him and at the same time looked around, examining one of the few sides of Tokyo he hadn’t gone much to. The entirety of this scenario was absurd in its own way, the folklore of the nightlife combined with the harsh environment the Yakuza groups had spread made everything seem surreal and entirely different to his own lifestyle.

Akaashi’s tattoos, his smoking habits, the music group, their clothes, the drunk and loud people trashing the place… It was all far too different to what he was used to. He wasn’t precisely protected from the dark things of life, but confronting a situation like this face to face was clearly not what he expected to do during his date with his cute barista.

After crossing plenty of establishments, they finally arrived at another dark alley. A long queue extended to the other side of the corner, and people dressed in all kinds of strange outfits waited in line smoking, drinking and laughing. Hinata and Akaashi ignored the queue and walked towards the thick black doors with bull’s-eye windows. Two bouncers stood still at the entrance, one of them letting in one or two people every once in a while. Hinata approached the other man, he was so short in comparison to him he had to look up to his face.

“What are you still doing here??” He asked half-surprised, half-angry.

The strong bouncer had long hair tied in a bun and soft stub beard, he sighed “I’m sorry, Hinata, my shift’s still not over.” He looked at his watch, “Noya will be done in five minutes, though.”

Hinata widened his eyes, “What about you?! Asahi, we can’t do this without a drummer!”

The man scratched the back of his head, “I still have an hour left…”

Hinata’s face went pale, he looked around and held his stomach “I think I’m going to be sick… I need a bathroom…” He walked into the club, disappearing into the crowd.

Akaashi watched him leave and then turned to Asahi, his eyes emotionless and his voice low and bored, “You really want to do this?”

Asahi looked at him and smiled, “Oh hi, Akaashi, I didn’t know you were coming.”

Akaashi rose an eyebrow, “You knew Sekimukai wasn’t going to make it for the concert, you knew Hinata would drag me here. Don’t bullshit me.”

Asahi looked around nervously, “I’m sorry, I knew…”

He nodded, “Then? Do you really want to do this?”

The tall man looked at him with confused eyes, “Do what?”

Akaashi sighed and tilted his head, “The whole concert and getting signed fairy-tail.”

“Of course, I do!” Asahi quickly added, “And even if I didn’t, Noya wants to; which means I’d do it anyways!” His voice was louder, almost like a childish protest.

“Fine, fine…” Akaashi rose his hand to calm him down, and after a few seconds of thinking through whatever was going through his head, he sighed, “Fine, call up your boss.”

Asahi widened his eyes and slowly shook his head, “No… No, I won’t do it, he’d kill me if I made you talk to him, he’d think I set him up or something!”

Akaashi rolled his eyes, “No, he’ll think Hinata set him up. Call him.”

Asahi hesitated and looked at his co-worker who was looking back at them with frightened eyes, then his eyes moved to Bokuto and he looked at him almost as if he wanted to ask his opinion on the matter, but Bokuto was as lost as anyone waiting in line, trying to figure out what they could be talking about or why Asahi was so reluctant to call his boss. _He probably just didn’t want to be too annoying asking for the free time to do the concert.._. That was the only thing Bokuto could think of that seemed reasonable enough.

Asahi rose his almost trembling hand up to his ear, “Boss… Could you…” He cleared his throat, “Could you come to the door?” Silence, followed by a nod. “He’s on his way… Please don’t do anything reckless...” He asked in a begging tone.

Akaashi shook his head, “Just want to talk.”

They waited for a few minutes until a tall man in his mid-40s showed up, his hair swept back and his clothes fancy yet trashy enough to fit in in the neighborhood.

“Asahi, what the hell do you want?” He asked without looking at either Bokuto or Akaashi.

Asahi tensed up and pointed at Akaashi, “He wants to talk to you…”

The man turned to Akaashi and although at first he widened his eyes in a mixture of fear and confusion, it quickly changed to toughness and an attempt to seem annoyed, “Akaashi, the fuck do you want? We already gave you the money.”

Akaashi nodded, “Lovely night, Oiwake.” He said with a calmed tone, his arms relaxed under his leather jacket and his tattoos showing through his V-neck.

“Yes, yes, cut the crap, what is it?” Oiwake crossed his arms and looked at Bokuto, “Is he with you? Are You trying to scare me again? Cause he looks like an idiot, you got him at a pet store?”

Akaashi frowned, “Why… Why a pet store?”

Oiwake looked at him nervously and then shook his head, “Whatever, just tell me what you want!”

“No.” Akaashi replied cuttingly, “I’m curious, why a pet store?”

 He hesitated, “I don’t know, he looks like an animal… I guess?”

“And you think it’s wise to insult a guy that looks like an animal?” Akaashi rose an eyebrow, “Don’t you think he could get mad?”

Bokuto felt surprised by what Akaashi was doing, was he using him to threaten this guy?? Either way, he decided to play along and frown, crossing his arms and tensing up to seem like he was getting annoyed.

Oiwake looked back at Bokuto and then at Akaashi, “Listen, man, I don’t know what it is that you want, but I want no trouble. Business is finally going well and the last thing I need is a scene.”

Akaashi smiled softly, “I came for the concert; I’ll be playing the guitar.”

“Oh…” Oiwake hesitated, “Good!”

He shook his head, “Not good. Hinata didn’t drag me out of my new wonderful and relaxing nocturnal routine to come here and find out Asahi has to work.”

Oiwake widened his eyes and turned to Asahi before looking back at Akaashi, “I… I see the problem here, but I’m afraid I can’t just have one bouncer at the door, Akaashi, you know that.”

“I don’t care.” He replied looking away in a bored tone.

The man growled lowly before clenching his jaw, “…Fine, whatever.” He turned to Asahi, “This is a one-time thing, you hear me?” He glared back at Akaashi, “And don’t think you can demand whatever you want just because of who you used to be!” He shook his head in annoyance and disappeared back into the club, ranting to himself.

Asahi bit his lower lip, “I told you to not do anything reckless…” He asked with a frightened face.

Akaashi shrugged, “I didn’t do anything that wasn’t talking.”

“You threatened him” He replied in a panicky whisper.

“No, I didn’t, actually. I just pointed out he shouldn’t insult Bokuto.” Akaashi replied pointing at him.

Asahi seemed about to protest, but instead, he just sighed and shook his head, “Thank you, we should go get ready.”

“I agree.” He turned to Bokuto, “You alright?”

Bokuto looked at him surprised, partly because he had been deep in thought trying to figure out what just happened, “What did he mean ‘because of who you used to be’??” He asked while following them into the club.

“What?” Akaashi asked in a yell, the rock music was loud and they could barely hear each other between the crowd, “You can ask me once we get to the dressing room!” He said before turning back and continuing to walk through the people.

Bokuto followed him, but as they went further, the density of people increased, creating a bigger distance between each other. Suddenly he felt a cold touch through his fingers, he looked down and found Akaashi’s inked fingers tangled between his, pulling him closer. He looked up, but Akaashi wasn’t looking at him, he could only see the back of his neck and his perfectly messy hair. He smiled and followed him, gripping on his hand to not let go.

They arrived at a dressing room in the back of the club, a short man stood by the bathroom door, his forehead pressed against it and one hand slamming it constantly, “Hinata, come on! We don’t have time for this! Stop throwing up!”

“Noya, Akaashi got me Oiwake to give me the time off.” Asahi said as they entered the room, making the man turn to them.

His hair was spiky, making him seem much taller than he was, he had a blond patch of hair that fell on his forehead, but the rest was all black. His excited eyes looked around the room, “Yes!! Akaashi thank you!!” He rushed to them, hitting Akaashi on the arm and almost making him fall to the side, “I knew we could count on you!”

“Nishinoya, please stop.” Akaashi asked as politely as he could. “Where is Hinata? We should be out in a few minutes.”

Noya smiled, “He’s in the bathroom throwing up, as always.” He looked at Bokuto, “Who is he?” He walked up to him, examining him closer.

“I’m Bokuto.” He introduced himself looking down at him.

“He’s with me.” Akaashi added as he walked towards one of the guitars, he picked it up and put it over his shoulders.

“What?? With you? Like with you with you??” Noya asked almost freaking out, “You don’t do dating!”

Akaashi glared at him without lifting his head, he began to tune the guitar, “I don’t. We are not dating.”

“Oh…” He giggled, “So he’s your latest acquisition!”

Bokuto rose an eyebrow, “I kind of feel like that makes me sound like a prostitute…”

Noya turned to him, “Oh no, I meant you’re his new sex-toy!” He said without noticing how offensive that term was.

“Noya, please…” Asahi lifted his hands trying to reach for the short man, “You’re being rude…” He looked like he was in pain or embarrassed.

“He’s right.” Akaashi added cuttingly looking at Bokuto, “Right?”

Bokuto rose an eyebrow and chuckled, “Right. I just like Akaashi, so I don’t mind how he sees me for as long as I’m the one that has him.” He replied daringly.

They remained in silence, staring at each other. Akaashi’s fingers circled the tuning pegs, tensing up the strings. Asahi and Noya remained still, watching both of them, unable to find out how to interact.

Bokuto couldn’t help but get lost in his eyes, thinking how ready he was to fight the situation, to show him he was worth giving a chance and he was not going to give up on loving him. Not even for a second or a stupid comment like that.

The door slammed open breaking the silence, “I’m ready!” Hinata screamed, “Let’s rock!” He said eagerly and clearly misreading the situation.

Noya and Asahi turned around and began to grab their equipment, Akaashi looked away breaking the eye contact and continuing to tune the guitar. They all got ready as fast as they could except for Bokuto, he watched them interact, Noya cheer them up and Hinata got as excited as his precious Natsu would have been in that very same situation. After a few minutes, they heard the music stop and a voice introducing their band that apparently went by the name of ‘Karasuno’.  

They exited the dressing room, Noya and Hinata being the first ones to run out of the room almost falling to the ground, being followed by Asahi who seemed to be more frightened by them injuring themselves than the gig itself. Akaashi was last, he continued to avoid Bokuto’s glance as they walked through the hallways.

“Thank you for coming.” He mumbled.

Bokuto looked at him surprised, “You’re the one that invited me, I should be thanking you.” He chuckled.

Akaashi frowned, “Whatever. I just guessed this wasn’t your type of scene so I figured you were making the effort.”

Bokuto laughed loudly, “I’m not making any effort; sure I don’t spend a lot of time in Roppongi but… I’d say you’re definitely my type of scene.” He stopped still and turned to Akaashi, carefully leaning down and kissing him on the lips.

Akaashi tensed up in surprise, but then he relaxed while looking away. “I have to go. Feel free to watch from behind the stage or in the crowd.”

Bokuto nodded, “I will be in the crowd, I want to be front row for your performance.”

Akaashi sighed and walked away without saying another word.

The concert lasted a few hours, Bokuto watched Akaashi’s every move. The way his fingers danced through the strings, pressing them and caressing them one by one, each time forming a new melody. His eyes barely looked up to the crowd and instead they remained staring down at his own fingers. Bokuto would have closed his eyes to enjoy the music, but he couldn’t take his eyes off of him. He wanted to know what he was thinking or feeling, the way being on stage or just being there at all made him feel. He glanced at the rest of the group, he saw Hinata fully enjoying himself, singing out the words excitedly as he looked back at Noya who played the base, bobbing his head up and down with the rhythm of Asahi’s drums. The three men were enjoying every second of it, they were reflecting their feelings through their body, showing the energy they felt vibrating through their skin.

Akaashi, on the other hand, seemed quiet, almost asleep but not out of boredom. He was concentrated, deep in thought like a kid playing with a jigsaw instead of a ball. The level of enjoyment was far deeper and required a further level of inner silence. His lips pursed, almost too tight to not speak out what he was thinking, and his eyes lost in the distance. The more Bokuto observed him, the more he wanted to know what sort of things were running through his mind. 

Regardless of the hard rock music echoing through the room, Bokuto felt a sound of the wind drifting through his ears and caressing the tall grass. The fresh air of the mountains even though he was surrounded by sweaty punks. The scent of the wildflowers and the touch of the gentle frozen water that cursed down a river. Never in his life had he felt so calmed.

As every song ended, Akaashi looked up, swimming with his eyes through the various people that formed the large crowd. At first, he seemed curious, but then he slightly widened his eyes in what for seconds seemed to be fear, until he found Bokuto’s glance, staring back at him. Was he looking for him? Was he, every time he took longer than before to find him, afraid that he had left? Bokuto smiled to himself, trailing with his fingers where Akaashi had grabbed his hand and trying to remember the way his skin felt.

Bokuto had always been the type to take things as they come, to accept reality and its changes, no matter how big or small they were… But this time, having Akaashi in his life felt like the biggest leap he had taken, he wanted to feel the adrenaline, the fear and excitement. He wanted to have him and conquer his heart the same way Akaashi had done with him.

 

\----

 

“I hope you had fun, Boku-chan!” Hinata said with the brightest smile yet. His hair was sweaty and stuck to his face, his face shone under the light because of how humid his entire body was.

Bokuto moved his hands to his hip, “I loved it! I am sure you will get signed tonight, Hinata! I am so proud of you and angry at myself! I should have come here to watch you guys play live sooner!”

Hinata’s eyes shone brightly, “Right?!?” He screamed and jumped into the air, “I knew you would like it! Noya is so awesome with the base playing like-” He began to make odd noises as he mimicked the movements, and then proceeded to imitate Asahi as well.

“We are leaving.” Akaashi interrupted them. “I have work tomorrow and I’ve done my part of the deal.” He turned to Bokuto, “You coming? Or you want to stay?”

Bokuto smiled, “I’m coming, of course.” He chuckled.

As they both walked out of the establishment after saying their goodbyes, they began to make their way back to Akaashi’s apartment. They walked in silence for a while until Akaashi sighed and without looking at him, he spoke.

“You don’t have me.” He said with a low and sharp voice.

Bokuto rose an eyebrow, “I… don’t have you?” He asked while thinking, trying to figure out what he could mean by that.

“You said you don’t mind if I see you as a sex-toy for as long as you’re the one that has me.” He explained bringing back the memory of the conversation they had at the dressing-room. “You don’t have me.”

Bokuto nodded, “But you see me as a sex-toy.” He felt like he was affirming that, except part of him felt like it was a question camouflaged as a normal sentence.

Akaashi nodded.

“Well then, if you can see me as a sex-toy, I can see you as mine.” Bokuto shrugged.

“Except I’m not yours.” Akaashi quickly added.

Bokuto chuckled, “And I’m not a sex-toy. I’m a human being.”

Akaashi groaned, “But I’m not yours.”

“Okay, okay…” Bokuto said trying to repress the laughter, “Why are you so bothered by that anyways? I’d say being publicly called a sex-toy is way worse.”

Akaashi frowned, “Then go away. I don’t care if what I say bothers you or offends you.”

He laughed loudly, “Then why don’t you ask me to go away instead?”

“Because I don’t care if you stay or you go.” Akaashi replied.

Bokuto shrugged, “And I don’t care if you call me a sex-toy, I was just pointing out it’s worse than being told you’re someone’s.”

Akaashi turned to him, “I am not yours, Bokuto!”

Bokuto frowned, trying to think what to say next. He wondered what bothered him so much but then decided to step in front of him, standing face to face and blocking his way. “I want you to listen to me right now, Akaashi.” He said softly yet cuttingly.

Akaashi looked up to him, he rose an eyebrow but remained silent, listening.

“You are not mine, and I am not a sex-toy.” He began, “But I know I am in love with you, I don’t know if love at first sight exists or not, and truth be told I don’t care. I only know I fell in love with you the moment I saw you. So you’re not mine, but if you really think I’m just a sex-toy to you and I have no chance when it comes to making you happy, then let me know so I can walk away and leave you alone. But if you don’t, shut up and let me make you fall in love with me.”

Akaashi stared back into his eyes, his hands in his pocket and a visible hesitation making his lips shake as he tried to find the words to form with them, “I told you this is just physical.” He finally replied.

Bokuto nodded, “I know, I am aware of the possibility that this could fail.”

Akaashi rose an eyebrow, “So why don’t you go away?”

Bokuto smiled, moving his hand up to Akaashi’s cheeks and carefully caressing them, “Because trying is far more worth it than walking away from someone as beautiful as you.” He chuckled, “And I know you don’t want me to go away.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you guys enjoyed it! Don't forget to leave in the commets down below what you loved, hated or simply thought about this! Also feel free to suggest on upcoming fics, I have a feeling this series is going to be pretty long and wild! Really exciting but it's you guys who make this worth writing <333 
> 
> Anyways, have a wonderful day and remember you can always reach me on tumblr! <3333 
> 
> http://ahominebaka.tumblr.com/


	4. The Number

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Akaashi hesitated, his eyes filled with confusion. Unable to find the words, he moved forward and kissed Bokuto’s stomach, his lips slowly parting against his white clear skin and his tongue caressing through a small path between his thick muscles.
> 
> Bokuto pushed his head back, emitting a soft moan as he caressed Akaashi’s hair, he felt his head swimming by the sole touch of this man, and although he tried to contain himself he felt already craving for him as his body heat increased.
> 
> Akaashi threw the cigarette out the window before going back to kissing Bokuto’s stomach, moving up to his chest and then down to his hip. His lips softly and slowly trailing around his skin, making quiet noises every time they collided.
> 
> Bokuto moved his hand to Akaashi’s neck and observed the tattoo he had there. It was big and covered half his neck and nape. 893. Between each number, he had small daggers that separated them. Bokuto ran his fingers through the ink, examining closer, “I’ve seen this number before…”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And here it is! I hope you guys enjoy it, I think the story is starting to get some shape around the characters, but we'll see what you guys think. 
> 
> Anyways, as some of you know by the comment section, yes; KurooKen will be the upcoming fic. But as you can imagine I will have to finish one of the current ones first because 4 chapters a week will make me go insane. I'm weak, sorry!
> 
> Also, I guess aside from DJ Krush, RJD2 is also a pretty neat example of music that fits Akaashi. Either way, I don't want to jinx it but I gotta say writing this fic is extremely easy in comparison to the rest. I don't know why? So yeah, I hope you guys enjoy it and have a lovely weekend! <333
> 
> http://ahominebaka.tumblr.com/

Their bodies melted together like ice on fire. The mixture of Bokuto's clear skin with the inked traces of Akaashi’s body, the fluids creating a smooth surface on each other, the soft panting and the low grunting sounds that both emitted in unison…

They were alone in Akaashi’s apartment, the area was silent or at least, that’s how they perceived it. Hinata and the rest were still back at the club, and Bokuto and Akaashi were making love in his room… Or at least, that’s how Bokuto saw things, Akaashi obviously considered it to be a simple ‘fucking’.

But Bokuto couldn’t care any less about how to call what they were doing. His brain could only process the soft desperate sounds his tattooed boy was making. He was sitting on the bed with his back against the wall and Akaashi on his lap moving up and down holding on tightly to him with his arms around Bokuto's neck and his face buried against his shoulder. Meanwhile, Bokuto put his big and thick arms around Akaashi’s back, one hand down to his behind so that he could help him move up and down his length and the other against Akaashi's neck.

“Akaashi…” Bokuto spoke softly, his eyes observing the tattoos and the way they moved with the rest of Akaashi’s body.

Almost obediently, Akaashi moved his head from Bokuto’s shoulders and stared into his eyes, melting and barely being able to keep them fully open as the pleasure ran through his body. Bokuto felt his hot tattooed fingers sliding through his white hair, and before he could moan his name once more, Akaashi moved forward, kissing him with a desperation that Bokuto had never experienced before.

Sweat dripping down their bodies, their breathing even with each other, and their movements synced as if their minds were connected. As their bodies tensed up, feeling the approaching ecstasy, Akaashi buried his face once more against Bokuto’s shoulder, panting each time with more need. Bokuto held him tighter, hugging him and pulling him closer as if he wanted to truly become one. His hand on the back of Akaashi’s neck, and his lips against his ear moaning loudly.

He pushed his head back, his eyes closed and his body trembling with the pleasure of the orgasm. Akaashi buried his teeth in Bokuto’s skin in an attempt to muffle his moan, but the pain only made it become even more pleasurable for the man underneath him.

They remained still for long seconds, the flickering lights from the outside illuminating the inside of the bedroom. This time, the music from the bars outside engulfed the ambience, accompanying their panting that decreased as their breathing adjusted and their heartbeat slowed down.

Without letting go of each other, Akaashi moved to look back at Bokuto. Their eyes met and although words weren’t spoken, they knew what the other one wanted to say and what they were thinking. They knew that was by far the most pleasurable thing they had done in a long time, and although they both were too afraid to admit it, it was probably the best sex they have ever had.

Bokuto smiled and moved his hand to Akaashi’s cheek, he caressed it with his thumb, “You’re beautiful…”

Akaashi looked down, his fingers trailing down Bokuto’s chest, “And you lack tattoos…” He said trying to sound grumpy and rational about his remark, but it was more than evident that he was just nervous and didn’t know what to say in response to Bokuto’s comment.

Bokuto laughed, shaking his head slowly, “I’m scared of needles.”

Akaashi looked back at him with a hint of surprise and embarrassment, “Oh…” He cleared his throat, “I’m sorry… I didn’t mean it like… I don’t mind that you don’t…”

Bokuto laughed once more, still caressing Akaashi’s cheeks but pulling him closer and tenderly kissing him on the lips, “I know, don’t worry… Don’t apologize.”

As Akaashi heard the last sentence, he stared into Bokuto's eyes for a few seconds, only to suddenly move away. He grabbed his pack of cigarettes and sat on his desk next to the window. He lit a cigarette and used the outside world as an ashtray.

Bokuto stared at him from the bed, he felt confusion and excitement. He didn’t know what words or things could trigger Akaashi to become distant once more, it was like a game where he would think he had him, but then the tattooed man would push him away and hide in a corner. He chuckled and stood up, walking towards the window.

“Did I say anything to offend you?” He asked without looking away from the streets below them.

Akaashi inhaled the smoke, taking his time to enjoy the burning sensation in his throat and to exhale, “You don’t tell me what to do.”

Bokuto turned to him while raising an eyebrow, “I know? When did I do that?”

Akaashi sighed, carefully hitting his cigarette on the edge of the window and letting the ashes fall on the people that passed by, “You told me to not apologize. I’ll do it if I want to.”

Bokuto nodded slowly, pensive as he tried to figure out what to do next, “Okay…” It was all he managed to say. They remained silent for a while until Bokuto found a new topic to bring up, “So… You’re a writer, huh?”

Akaashi looked back at him and nodded, “Trying to be.”

“Where do you write?” He said finally turning to him and trying to ignore the distracting fact that they were both still naked.

Akaashi rose an eyebrow, “Here?”

Bokuto sighed, “I know, I mean a computer, or…?”

Akaashi chuckled sarcastically, “Do I look like I have enough money to buy a computer?”

Bokuto hesitated and looked around, “Well then how do you write?”

Akaashi sighed, his eyes filled with dullness as he stared back at Bokuto. He put the cigarette between his lips and while he inhaled and exhaled the smoke without even taking it out, he used both his hands to open a drawer and take out a stack of papers. “I handwrite whatever I write.” He replied with his voice muffled by the cigarette.

Bokuto took the papers and examined them, “Are… Are you serious? There must be more than ten thousand pages here!”

Akaashi nodded, “Twenty-three thousand five hundred and seventy-one.” He replied looking back out the window.

Bokuto shuffled through the pages with perplexed eyes, his lips opened but no voice escaped through them as he found himself speechless, “You… You prefer to write like this??”

Akaashi chuckled and shook his head, “Obviously not, I’ve always wanted a typewriter.” He shrugged, “But between rent, food, cigarettes, and whatever other expenses I have, my income as a barista doesn’t leave me with much to save.”

Bokuto nodded slowly, putting the papers back in the drawer. He approached Akaashi, stepping closer to him, “I’m sorry…” He whispered looking at him.

Akaashi turned to him with surprise, “For what?”

Bokuto cleared his throat, “For… Not noticing when I say things you don’t like…”

Akaashi hesitated, his eyes filled with confusion. Unable to find the words, he moved forward and kissed Bokuto’s stomach, his lips slowly parting against his white clear skin and his tongue caressing through a small path between his thick muscles.

Bokuto pushed his head back, emitting a soft moan as he caressed Akaashi’s hair, he felt his head swimming by the sole touch of this man, and although he tried to contain himself he felt already craving for him as his body heat increased.

Akaashi threw the cigarette out the window before going back to kissing Bokuto’s stomach, moving up to his chest and then down to his hip. His lips softly and slowly trailing around his skin, making quiet noises every time they collided.

Bokuto moved his hand to Akaashi’s neck and observed the tattoo he had there. It was big and covered half his neck and nape. _893_. Between each number, he had small daggers that separated them. Bokuto ran his fingers through the ink, examining closer, “I’ve seen this number before…”

Akaashi tensed up for a bit but continued to kiss his chest, “Have you?” He asked between breaths and kisses.

Bokuto nodded, trying to think where and why he had seen it before. It was as if he had the answer at the tip of his tongue but couldn’t quite put his finger on it, “What is it?”

Akaashi looked up to him, his messy black hair all over his face, “You really want to talk about my tattoos right now?”

Bokuto stared down at him, he shrugged, “I’m just curious…”

Akaashi sighed, “I’m covered in them, why do you want to know about this one in particular?”

Bokuto thought about it for a while, he continued to run his fingers through the black and red lines that formed the numbers and daggers, “I don’t know, as I said; I’ve seen this number before…”

Akaashi narrowed his eyes, studying Bokuto’s expression, “Well this one is the last one you should worry about. I’m getting it covered soon.”

Bokuto opened his mouth to ask why and how; he had so many questions… But just as he was about to say something, Akaashi leaned forward, burying Bokuto’s length between his lips. This took him by surprise and although he slightly jumped at the warm touch of Akaashi’s mouth, he moaned in pleasure and let him continue without asking any further about the numbers.

 

\----

 

The bad thing about finally asking someone out and attending a surprise punk/rock concert on a Sunday is how exhausted you’ll feel on Monday. 

Bokuto heard his phone ringing on the bedside table, sleepily and clumsily he reached around for it. He picked it up and put it against his ear.

“Hello?” His voice rusty and exhausted. He heard Iwaizumi’s voice in the distance, far enough for him to look at his phone in confusion. He was using it backwards. “Hello?” He repeated, this time using it correctly.

“Bokuto, where the fuck are you?!” Iwaizumi asked grumpily on the other side.

Bokuto looked at his watch and sighed, “Shit…” He rubbed his eyes, “I’ll be there in… 30 minutes. Make it an hour.”

He heard Iwaizumi’s voice complaining and loudly ask a ‘where the fuck are you?!’ but he was already hanging up and getting dressed. He looked back at the bed and found Akaashi, he was fast asleep lying on his stomach and his head turned to the wall. He smiled to himself and carefully leaned on the bed with his knee and hands, moving his head down and kissing Akaashi’s back, filled with a large tattoo piece of dragons and many other things.

He grabbed his things and walked as quietly as he could out of the room, finding Hinata asleep on the floor with a bottle of alcohol under his arm. Asahi was on the couch and Noya on top of him with his head resting on the big man’s chest. The three of them snoring loudly after what seemed to be a large celebration with lots of alcohol.

Bokuto exited the apartment and tried to find his way through the streets of Roppongi. The place looked incredibly different throughout the day in comparison to how lively it was at night. He yawned and walked through the silent and trashed bars, crossing the clubs and avoiding the men in suits and tattoos. Roppongi wasn’t the main focal point for the Yakuza, everyone knew that was Shinjuku, but the wild nightlife and drunk people attracted the smaller groups whether the media wanted to report it or not.

He rushed to work, aware of how late he was. His students were probably there already, and Kiyoko was going to kill him. Friends or not, he was praying he wouldn’t get fired. One thing was to be a few minutes late, another was to arrive two hours past his time.

He finally arrived at the school, he was wearing the same clothes that he wore the day before, except now he stank of cigarettes and whatever parties smelled like. Kiyoko stood at the entrance, she was furious.

“What the fuck is your problem?!” She yelled but lowered her voice with the swear words. She walked to him with a textbook rolled in her hand and as she stood in front of him she hit him on the head with it, “You’re seriously taking this too far, Bokuto!”

Bokuto dropped to his knees and put his hands together in forgiveness and a begging manner, “I’m sorry! I’m so sorry! I didn’t go home last night and the alarm on my phone sucks and it didn’t go off! I’m so sorry!” He repeated over and over.

Kiyoko crossed her arms, “I’m so tired of the way you abuse our friendship! I should fire you!” She was definitely very pissed off.

“No!” Bokuto quickly said, “You can’t! You know I can’t say goodbye to Sunshine Park! I can’t say goodbye to Natsu! You need me! I need you!” He felt he was going insane by the idea of losing his job, “I’ll do anything! ANYTHING!”

Kiyoko stared down at him, “Anything?”

“Anything!!” He said while grabbing her by the arms and shaking her back and forth, “Just don’t fire me!”

Kiyoko looked into his eyes for a long while before sighing, “…Fine… But you will receive punishment and go on probation until I decide you’re good.”

Bokuto stood up quickly and nodded, “Okay! Yes! What punishment?”

Kiyoko smirked, whatever she had thought of, it wasn’t good, “You will have to come in an hour earlier and stay until whenever I decide you can go home. You will work Sundays as well, in the face of this merger, I will need you full time.”

Bokuto hesitated, he was going to have to drown in work for a long time and that would mean having fewer chances to see Akaashi… But he nodded, feeling the pain in his heart, “Fine… Fine, whatever you say…” He sighed.

“And…” Kiyoko continued, “Your salary will be cut in half.”

Bokuto stared at her in shock, “What?! In half?! You know that’s not fair!”

Kiyoko shook her head, “It’s more than fair, I’ve been putting up with your tardiness for almost a year now, just because you’re in love it doesn’t give you the right to take this job lightly.”

Bokuto thought about it but knew there wasn’t an out. If he wanted to keep his job he would have to commit. “Fine… Fine…” He sighed.

Kiyoko nodded, “Good. Now go to your class.”

Bokuto nodded as well and walked away, entering his class and feeling a slight headache as all the children screamed his name with excitement.

 

\-----

 

Natsu sat on the teacher’s desk, and Bokuto was sitting on his chair facing her. He tapped his leg twice, “Come on; let me see what you did there.” Natsu put her tiny leg on Bokuto’s and showed him a nasty scratch she had gotten after falling down on the yard.

Just as Bokuto began to apply some alcohol with a small piece of cotton, he looked up to her, “You know? I met your brother yesterday…”

Natsu looked at him with surprise, “Shō-chan?!”

Bokuto nodded slowly, grabbing some band aids from the medical kit.

“Mom and dad don’t like Shō-chan…” Natsu continued, “digace.”

Bokuto looked at her with confusion, “Digace?”

She nodded eagerly, “Digace, he didn’t want school.”

Bokuto thought about it, mentally shuffling through all the words she could be talking about… Digace… Disgace… Disgrace… “You mean disgrace? Because he didn’t go to school?”

She nodded once more, “Shō-chan likes music. He left. They wanted him to leave…”

Bokuto hesitated before putting on the Band-Aid, “Your… Your parents kicked him out?” She only shrugged, obviously she didn’t know and she was too young for her parents to explain. He sighed and finished treating her wounds. “Come on, let’s go for lunch.” He said to her as he helped her off the desk.

They walked to the dining room where most of the students were already sitting and enjoying their food. His three co-workers were scattered around helping the children and taking care of them. Bokuto carefully approached Iwaizumi.

“Sorry about this morning…” He mumbled.

Iwaizumi turned to him and chuckled, “No worries, I figured you had an exciting night?” Ever since he had been talking to that Oikawa, Bokuto couldn’t help but notice how different he was. It’s not like he changed entirely, but he seemed less grumpy and annoyed by things. Generally far more forgiving, in a way.

Bokuto nodded, “I spent the night with him, went to a concert and… Turns out his roommate is Natsu’s brother?”

Iwaizumi frowned, “You’re kidding, right?! Hinata Shōyō is your boy’s roommate? That’s a wild coincidence…”

Bokuto nodded, “Yeah, tell me about it… Plus they are identical.” He chuckled.

Iwaizumi nudged him on the shoulder, “So? How was it with Akaashi??”

Bokuto shrugged, “I…” He tried to be humble and light about it, but he couldn’t help himself and instead he shook his head and chuckled, “He’s fucking perfect…” He whispered so the students wouldn’t hear.

Iwaizumi laughed with him, “I’m guessing either you guys had a very exhausting night, or he lives very far. One of those should explain how late you were today.”

Bokuto nodded, “Both… To be honest, both.” He cleared his throat, “Hey, could I ask you something?”

Iwaizumi looked at him, “Sure, is everything okay? Did something happen?”

He shook his head quickly, “It’s… It’s something I saw recently and it’s been bothering me. I know I’ve seen it before, but I just can’t put my finger on it.”

Iwaizumi rose an eyebrow, “Okay…?”

“You know…” He scratched the back of his head, “You know… The numbers 893?”

Iwaizumi nodded, “I’m a teacher; I know numbers…”

Bokuto sighed in annoyance, “I’m serious, Iwaizumi, I mean those three numbers. Put together.”

Iwaizumi stared at him and began to laugh, “You’re kidding right?”

Bokuto looked back at him, his face serious and waiting for the answer.

Iwaizumi’s laughter disappeared and he stared back at his friend, “You’re… You’re not kidding? You really saw those numbers?”

Bokuto hesitated and nodded, “Yeah, you know what they are?”

Iwaizumi waited a few seconds, thinking, “I mean, I know what they could be… But where the hell did you see them?!”

Bokuto tilted his head, “On his… Just tell me what they mean, please.”

Iwaizumi sighed, “893; _yattsu, ku, san_.” He waited for those words to mean something to Bokuto.

Bokuto shrugged, “You’re just telling me how to read them in Japanese.”

Iwaizumi shook his head, “ _yattsu, ku, san._ It’s where the name _Yakuza_ comes from.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ohoho! I have to admit I can't help but wonder how many of you knew what 893 meant without Iwaizumi's help... Feel free to let me know in the comments! Also what you loved, hated, or didn't care about this chapter! Also what did you guys have for dessert today? I didn't have any which makes me sad so I'll go fix that now. 
> 
> I truly hope you guys enjoyed this chapter and I'd seriously love to hear your theories on what's crackalacking in Akaashi's life and mind! Also, don't forget to check out the rest of fics in the series (I will update The Odd Mix soon), and to talk to me on tumblr if you want to cause im usually around and always willing to talk to people <333 
> 
> http://ahominebaka.tumblr.com/


	5. The Hooded Intel

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “It’s not charity.” Bokuto shrugged, “I just want to help you out with the change.” Ah… There it was. Bokuto’s fuck up line. What was he going to say now? Oh yeah, I remembered what your tattoo meant? I know you are or, most probably, were part of the Yakuza mafia? So I want to help you leave that life behind? He fucked up and Akaashi was going to be mad.
> 
> Akaashi raised an eyebrow, “Help with the change?” He asked taking out the cigarette from his mouth and exhaling the smoke.
> 
> Bokuto hesitated, looking around. “I… I figured out… I remembered what your tattoo means.” Oh great, so he was going for that horrible line then.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy #transdayofvisibility guys!! 
> 
> I hope you guys are having a wonderful week and I hope you enjoy this chapter a lot! I hope you feel that as chapters go by, we are going deeper and deeper into the truth of Akaashi's life. I don't really have any songs to recommend this time, mostly because I've been dealing with my PC all day handling the updates and so on... Either way, some good news I can give is that the list of fics is increasing for this series and if everything goes as superb as I hope it goes I can end up with 17 different stories, give it or take~! we'll see how this goes! 
> 
> Anyways, I'll let you guys enjoy the chapter now <3  
> http://ahominebaka.tumblr.com/

_Yattsu, ku, san… Oichokabu… Hanafuda…_

Bokuto had spent restless nights doing a large amount of research; his mind shuffling through these words as he tried to remember how he knew them and where he had seen them before. History books. That’s right, he had learned about the origin of the Yakuza a long time ago. He knew where their name came from; a card game called Oichokabu.

The deck of cards used for this specific game was called Hanafuda, also known as Flower Cards. The game consisted of using the smallest digit, adding cards and subtracting the numbers. 893.

8-9-3=0.

Yakuza=Useless.

_Useless people._

He took a deep breath, trying to focus and remember how little he cared about whether Akaashi was or had ever been part of the criminal underworld. He did have a lot of questions, but none of them were important enough or dangerous enough to stay away from him. If anything, the only thing that was currently keeping him away from Akaashi was Kiyoko’s punishment.

The sun shone brightly in the sky, making each lock of Bokuto’s hair shine brighter than ever.  His days at work had become exhausting, his mind was overwhelmed with the amount of information he was constantly being given and his heart felt on the brink of dying, unable to handle the sleepless nights, the large coffee cups, and most importantly; the hours without Akaashi.

Weeks had passed and he had spent most of the nights in what used to be Gojo High School and was now Yugao High School. The building had been abandoned for months, maybe years, no one really knew. All they knew was what they saw, and it was a trashed up place in dreadful conditions, making it be the scariest building to be during any cold night. 

But Bokuto, fearless or not, had grown more than used to the creepy vibe of the place, spending a large amount of nights between the thick walls covered in graffiti. 

First, he was there to meet the rest of teachers that were going to be part of the academy’s team. They weren’t many; so far the new headmistress had only managed to find two people willing to follow her in this endeavor. Secondly, his nights after taking care of the children back at Sunshine Park were drowned in large stacks of paperwork. He dreamed of them, he saw them as soon as he closed his eyes; every document he read or processed was engraved in his mind and heart making this activity even more unbearable. Thirdly, and finally, the paperwork hours had changed into clean-up and reconstruction time. He didn’t mind this as much as the rest, although he found himself even more physically exhausted each day. They had to re-paint the walls, reconstruct the furniture… Practically, rebuild the place from the ashes.

He wasn’t alone in this, of course. He knew Kiyoko was angry at him for being so late so often, but she wouldn’t dare to set him up to do all this work on his own. Strangely, yet not surprisingly enough, Iwaizumi was there every day and every night. He wasn’t being punished like Bokuto; he had volunteered to do all this, which only made the owl looking man more suspicious. He always had the theory that his friend was an alien obsessed with work, and now it was starting to be confirmed. 

Either way, whether he suffered through the days or not, what he craved for the most was Akaashi; his heartache at the thought of not having him, wondering where he would be and if he was thinking of him as well. Every once in a while, he would close his eyes and move his fingers, trying to visualize what would be Akaashi’s soft and precious skin. He would picture himself tracing down every tattoo, every muscle, and feeling the soft texture of his pores and his skin as it tensed up at the touch. He tried to remember the taste of his kisses, his soft and quiet voice… Oh, the silence… He had never in his life craved for silence, yet being with Akaashi meant dealing with a special quietness he had never encountered. The slow and whispered words, the careful selection of each syllable in each sentence, the constant wonder of the man’s reaction… Was he going to be angry? Was he going to walk away? Quiet down? Or was he going to kiss Bokuto with even more desperation? Even after sharing information about each other, Akaashi remained an unsolved mystery; an addiction to Bokuto’s senses, a puzzle to solve, and a need to satisfy as soon as he could.

Unfortunately, Bokuto had completely forgotten to ask him his number. He had ended up with no way to contact him no matter how hard he tried. Sure, he knew where he lived, but his time was filled with work-hours and he had barely taken any break to get some sleep and food to eat.

The birds sang above from the clouds and trees, and the morning deepened into a cold afternoon. Iwaizumi stood by Bokuto’s side, multitasking and listening to audio-notes of paperwork as he painted the walls. Bokuto heard a low growl, the soft sound of someone’s starvation becoming more evident, he turned to look at his friend and saw how he simply continued to paint, not even noticing about his own necessities.

Bokuto looked down at the sound of his own stomach accompanying the growling, “Iwaizumi.” He spoke with a rusty tired voice.

His friend turned to him, they both looked like shit. Bags under their eyes, dried up lips and stained faces with paint… “What is it?” His friend asked.

“We are both starving…” Bokuto pointed out.

Iwaizumi hesitated; they were so tired they could barely process the information around them, “O-okay…?”

Bokuto nodded slowly.

Iwaizumi nodded as well, and they went back to painting the walls. Their arms moving slowly up and down as the soft brush caressed the wall, leaving trails of white paint behind. They heard slow steps in the distance; someone approached them and stood behind them.

“Guys?” Kiyoko spoke, her voice gentle and shy, “How long have you been doing this??”

Both men hesitated; they didn’t know the answer and the question itself confused them. They remained silent, moving their arms slowly and feeling their bodies move even slower back and forth as they inhaled and exhaled.

Kiyoko cleared her throat, “Do you guys know what time it is?” She waited, but they didn’t answer, “We were done hours ago…”

Iwaizumi turned his head to Bokuto, Bokuto looked back at him. “My phone ran out of battery…” Bokuto spoke with a coarse voice. 

Iwaizumi nodded, “So did mine…”

Kiyoko hesitated, “And… And your watches?”

They both shook their heads, “We took them off to paint…” Iwaizumi pointed out. They had been standing there for long hours, in silence and feeling their bodies relax with the slow movements of the brush. They were so tired they didn’t care about the time, and neither of them had gone back into the office to check it. They just didn’t care. They were awake but asleep.

Kiyoko snorted, trying to repress a chuckle, “Okay… Come on, guys, I’ll buy you lunch.” She carefully patted them on the shoulder.

They both slowly put down the tools, turning around to follow their boss. They exited the building, almost being blinded by the sun as it directly hit their eyes. They walked in silence, feeling the freshness of the day but also the exhaustion buried in their bodies. They were starving, tired, thirsty, pretty much anything…

Kiyoko drove them through the streets; her car was an adorable version of any car a business-woman would own, except it had a few plush toys and figures lying around. “Thank you so much for helping guys…” She smiled to them.

Both men nodded, “I didn’t really have a choice…” Bokuto mumbled.

Iwaizumi chuckled, “You know you did… Even if this wasn’t a punishment for you, you would have signed up to help anyways.”

Bokuto sighed and looked out the window, “I guess… Why are Daichi and Suga not helping, by the way?”

Kiyoko shook her head, “They are, but they are mostly helping Yachi get the hang of how things work. They manage more paperwork and the resumes.”

So in the end, Bokuto was getting off easy. He knew Kiyoko set him up with the manual labor to not drive him insane. Sure he had to handle a bit of paperwork at the beginning, but she could have easily tortured him with continuous days of it.

They finally arrived at a small restaurant and after going to wash up their hands and faces for a bit, they sat in one of the booths in front of Kiyoko. Iwaizumi rested his body against the window and his head on the table while Bokuto pushed his head back and closed his eyes, almost falling asleep. Kiyoko ordered for them, letting them rest up for a few minutes before eating some food. The place was quiet except for a few conversations that were going on a few tables next to them, and as soon as they brought their food, they began to eat slowly and quietly.

“How is it going with Oikawa, Iwaizumi?” She asked with a sweet tone as she enjoyed her own meal.

Iwaizumi sighed and nodded, “Fine, he’s coming back in a few days… We’ve been skyping every night.” He looked out the window.

Bokuto smiled to himself, he couldn’t help but think how sweet Iwaizumi sounded when he talked about Oikawa. It’s not the choice of words he used, but the way his tone of voice changed, his volume would lower and he would frown; showing a different grumpiness that could easily be translated into worry or concern for the person instead of a simple annoyance. Besides, getting him to talk about someone and go into ‘detail’ was an odd thing, he didn’t need to mention they had been talking daily through skype, or the many other facts he had been sharing for the past days during their lunch-breaks or quiet nights of paperwork.

“What about you, Bokuto?” She asked, bringing him back from his line of thought.

He looked at her in surprise, chewing his food, “Me?” He asked with his cheeks filled with pancakes. An odd thing to order for lunch, but he was happy this way so no one judged him.

Kiyoko nodded, “Akaashi, was it?”

His cheeks turned pink and he nodded in excitement, “I haven’t been able to see him lately, but he’s so perfect… He’s a writer! And well, he works in the cafeteria, but he writes by hand! And he has perfect soft black hair! And his roommate is Natsu’s brother!” He began to blurt out the words, adding more and more information without even following a proper path. He just wanted to finally get it all out, to tell the world how perfect Akaashi was and how in love he was with him even though they had just met.

Kiyoko stared at him with wide eyes, trying to process the information while Iwaizumi snorted with his mouth full of food.

“He’s… He’s a writer? And Natsu’s brother?” She asked confused.

Bokuto shook his head, “No, no! His roommate is Natsu’s brother! Apparently he got kicked out for not wanting to go to school, he’s a musician and I went to one of his concerts and they are so good, and they got signed!”

Kiyoko nodded with each statement, her eyes still wide as she listened. Iwaizumi only shook his head and contained the giggles; he had heard all this already and had gone through the same shock as her, so now he only found her reaction amusing.

“So…” she began, “Have you talked to him lately?” She tilted her head with a frown, almost as if she wasn’t sure what she was asking.

Bokuto hesitated and shook his head, “Not really, I don’t have his number and I haven’t been able to see him since then.” He shrugged and looked back at her with puppy eyes.

Kiyoko sighed and made a sad face, to which Iwaizumi rose his finger, pointing at her, “Don’t you dare feel bad for punishing him.” He said still trying to hold back the laughter.

She hesitated and closed her eyes, “Well, you guys deserve a break… Why don’t you take the rest of the day off and tomorrow as well?” She sighed as she felt the way she was giving in.

Iwaizumi groaned and shook his head, “See? He knew you were going to react that way!” He pointed out as Bokuto looked at her excitedly like a kid on Christmas.

Kiyoko nodded, “I know, I know… But you guys deserve it anyways…”

They continued to eat their food, Iwaizumi continued to talk about Oikawa and the many things he had learned about him during their skype-dates, Kiyoko talked about work and when she didn’t she would, oddly enough, mention Yachi quite often… But Bokuto could only think about having the day off to go see Akaashi. He felt excited, relieved and eager to finally see his face and hear his voice.

They finished their meals and got out of the restaurant. Kiyoko said her goodbyes before getting in her car since Iwaizumi and Bokuto lived nearby and were going to walk home.

They walked through the busy streets, their old shabby clothes stained with white paint here and there. They yawned every once in a while as they passed the stores and looked through their windows, trying to figure out what they were selling even though they knew very well what type of shops surrounded them. 

Suddenly, Bokuto stopped; his heart frozen and the air stopping in his lungs. He approached one of the windows, putting his palms to his sides against the glass and stared down at one of the items that were being shown.

“I have to buy that.” He mumbled loud enough for Iwaizumi to hear.

His friend walked slowly to him, his hands in his pockets and his voice dragged in exhaustion, “...A typewriter?” He rose an eyebrow and stared back at his friend.

Bokuto didn’t turn to him and nodded, his eyes looking down at the machine.

Iwaizumi looked back at it as well and sighed, “Well it’s pretty expensive… And your salary was cut in half, are you sure?”

Bokuto nodded without really listening, he was very aware of the high price, but he also knew the typewriter was of good quality. He had come to that store multiple times to buy all kinds of antiques and decoration for his own apartment and he had never been disappointed by whatever he bought. He turned to his friend, “Can I??”

Iwaizumi hesitated and then shrugged, “Why are you asking me? We both know who this is for and we both know you’re going to do it no matter what I say…”

Bokuto stared at him blankly, either his friend was softening up for good, or he was so tired he didn’t care about Bokuto’s choice-making abilities like he used to do. Quickly and before he changed his mind, Bokuto walked to the door and entered the store, being followed by his friend. He greeted the old lady that managed the store and asked her for the typewriter.

The woman began to set it into a leather case, her fingers carefully cleaning every inch of it with a small cloth. Bokuto looked down at it, his heartbeat fastening at the sole thought of being able to give Akaashi something like this, and his trail of thought going through the many different types of scenarios and outcomes that could take place.

“Are you sure about this?” Iwaizumi asked quietly from his side, “I mean, are you going to have enough money for bills and stuff?”

Bokuto nodded, “My bills have been paid already.”

Iwaizumi sighed, “What about food? Do you have enough of that to last you the rest of the month?” Ah, that was the Iwaizumi Bokuto knew so well. 

Bokuto nodded, “Everything is fine, I can afford this.” He couldn’t. In fact, he had completely forgotten to go grocery shopping and would probably have to survive on leftovers and maybe canned food for the rest of the month. But he didn’t care, not when he could do something like that…

The lady turned to him with a soft and wrinkled smile, she told him the high price he was already very aware of and proceeded to gently push the case towards him for him to take. Bokuto hesitated as he reached out for his wallet; he took out his card and handed it to her, feeling the pain in his chest at the thought of how broke he was going to be that month… But the payment was done, she handed him the card back and after taking a deep breath, he grabbed the case and walked out of the store with Iwaizumi following him in silence but quietly shaking his head.

 

\-----

Bokuto went home and showered, he took a short but very satisfying nap and woke up only just a few minutes before Akaashi’s shift would be over. Or at least, he hoped his timetable would be the same as when they went out on their first date… He got ready, grabbed the leather case and walked out of his apartment, making his way towards the cafeteria where he had met his beloved man.

The place was quiet, there weren't  many people around and the inside of any establishment was only crowded by the people who wanted to have a warm drink and stay somewhere nice before going home. The sun was almost gone and the frozen weather made people want to come out even less than they usually did. 

Bokuto looked around, searching for Akaashi between the sea of employees and customers until he finally saw his soft and white gloves cleaning up the bar. He watched him without moving from where he stood, he observed his focused eyes, his pursed lips, and serious face as he moved around and cleaned without saying a word to anyone. He remembered the night he had gone to see the concert, the way Akaashi concentrated and ignored the rest of the world… He had the same eyes, the same careful stare as he looked around searching for what to do next, he was deep in thought, thinking of things no one else could know but Bokuto imagined they were great and magical things.

Slowly and with hesitation, Bokuto stepped towards him. He looked at him with a soft smile and sighed.

Akaashi turned to him, his eyes first expressing indifference but then switching into slight surprise, “Oh… Well, I haven’t seen you around since…” He didn’t finish the sentence.

Bokuto chuckled and nodded, “I know… I’ve been busy.” He said apologetically. 

Akaashi hesitated, narrowing his eyes and examining Bokuto. He cleared his throat, “Listen, I said myself it was just a physical thing, so don’t sweat it.” He shrugged and continued to clean.

Was he angry that Bokuto hadn’t gone to the cafeteria since their night together? Did he think Bokuto only wanted a one-night thing? He smiled at the idea and shook his head, “Are you getting off soon?”

“Yeah, in a few minutes. Why?”  He asked without looking up. His tone was dry and almost angry.

Bokuto shrugged, looking around, “I don’t know, maybe we could go out together? Spend some time in each other’s company?”

Akaashi hesitated, standing straight and leaving the cloth aside. He sighed and shook his head, “No, I don’t think so.” He answered without looking back at him.

Bokuto felt a pinch in his heart at hearing this, but he wasn’t going to give up so fast, “Please… I’m sorry, okay? I know I must have looked like a jerk for not coming around, but I was late for work and-”

“I don’t care, okay?” Akaashi interrupted him as he looked into his eyes, “For the fifth time, this is just physical. I don’t care.”

Bokuto looked down, “…But I do care.” He mumbled, “I told you I’d make you fall in love with me.”

Akaashi scoffed as he took off his apron, “Whatever... You can’t tell me you were serious with that.”

Bokuto looked up to him in surprise, “Of course I was!”

Akaashi looked back at him and stopped moving for a few seconds, thinking. He sighed and looked away, “Fine, we can hang out... But only a few hours. I have things to do.”

Bokuto smiled widely at the idea and nodded, waiting for him to leave his stuff. They exited the cafeteria and Akaashi stopped for a few seconds, taking his gloves off and putting his hands together in front of his mouth to light up a cigarette. As the end of the stick went redder with the fire, Akaashi’s eyes moved down to the leather case.

“What do you have there?” He asked with a muffled voice.

Bokuto looked down in surprise, “Oh… Well, this is something I got for you.”

Akaashi looked back at him with surprise and hesitated, “I don’t need your charity.” He replied cuttingly.

“It’s not charity.” Bokuto shrugged, “I just want to help you out with the change.” Ah… There it was. Bokuto’s fuck up line. What was he going to say now? Oh yeah, I remembered what your tattoo meant? I know you are or, most probably, were part of the Yakuza mafia? So I want to help you leave that life behind? He fucked up and Akaashi was going to be mad.

Akaashi raised an eyebrow, “Help with the change?” He asked taking out the cigarette from his mouth and exhaling the smoke.

Bokuto hesitated, looking around. “I… I figured out… I remembered what your tattoo means.” Oh great, so he was going for that horrible line then.

The black haired man looked back at him, “My tattoo? Which one of them?” He didn’t remember. He had so many and he was probably asked about them so often he didn’t remember Bokuto’s special curiosity for one in particular. Or maybe he was pretending he didn't remember...

“893.” Was all he managed to say.

Akaashi chuckled, “I don’t know what you remembered or figured out, but I doubt this is what you think.” He shook his head and chuckled some more, “Look, just drop the act that you care about me, okay? I get it, you like me and I like you, I guess. But I don’t need some romantic act or big move from you to have sex.” He shrugged, “I…” He didn’t finish.

Bokuto waited for the end of the sentence, watching the way Akaashi’s eyes drifted to the other side of the road, distractedly losing track of whatever conversation they were having, “You…?” He asked in an attempt to make him continue his speech, but as he turned around to look at whatever he was looking at, he saw a man standing still on the other side, right in front of them. His face was invisible under the darkness of his black hoodie, but it was more than clear he was staring at them.

Akaashi hesitated, but without saying a word and without even looking at both sides, he crossed the street towards the hooded man. Bokuto immediately followed him, fearing for whatever was about to happen.

“What are you doing here?!” Akaashi hissed at the man.

The hood moved around as the man looked at both sides, trying to see if a third party was watching them or not, “I came to warn you.” He said with a soft and shaky voice. If he was trying to threaten Akaashi, he was doing a horrible job.

“I fucking told you guys already, leave me alone!” Akaashi replied angrily, “And since when do they fucking send you to do the dirty work?!”

The stranger hesitated, “I’m not here to do anything! I came to warn you about them! I know you don’t want to come back and personally, I don’t care. But they do, and they are coming for you today.”

Bokuto watched Akaashi’s hesitation, he shook his head, “I don’t care. I’ll tell them the same thing I’ve already told you and the many men they sent before. I’m not coming back, Yamaguchi.”

Bokuto looked at the hooded man as he heard his name.

Yamaguchi nodded, “And I told you I’m not here to get you back… Listen something weird is happening on the inside of this, okay? I… I can’t tell you much other than I’m working with TSK and he’s showing me things that I shouldn’t know about. I know things that could get me killed!”

“TSK?” Akaashi frowned, “What the hell? Since when are you involved with TSK??” He laughed, “You’re supposed to be the shy saiko-komon and you’re digging up intel for someone like TSK??”

Bokuto shook his head and blinked a few times, who the fuck was TSK? Who was this Yamaguchi? What the hell were they talking about?

Yamaguchi reached out, making his hood fall off and show his freckled face and brown hair as he grabbed Akaashi by the collar, “Listen to me, you prick, I might be a fucking shy administrator, but I am the administrator for the Yakuza gang you loved so much a few months ago. I am telling you something bad is happening and things will get worse, I am not giving intell, I am getting it. So I’m here to tell you they are coming for you and you better fucking run because they aren’t sending any more shatei. They are sending your brother and his little dog to come get you.”

Akaashi froze in place, his cigarette dropped from his fingers as he stared back into Yamaguchi’s eyes, “…Thank you…” He finally mumbled back.

Yamaguchi nodded, letting go of his clothes and quickly walking away, looking down and covering his face once more. 

Akaashi hesitated and turned to Bokuto, “I…-”

Bokuto watched the man leave and then turned to Akaashi, “...Are you finally going to admit I’m right and my theory is true?” Bokuto asked with a low voice.

Akaashi remained silent, thinking, and probably still in shock after what he had heard. Slowly and without saying a word, he nodded, “I… I was a Yakuza.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I gotta admit I can't shake the feeling that I cut off the chapter at a very odd place, I hope you guys liked it anyways because I have to admit writing this chapter was very hard. I wanted to have more BokuAka, but given Bokuto's punishment, it was going to be hard to ignore something like that. Also, the main reason I left things here and didn't continue any further with might have been a prolonged revelation is because I didn't want to down you guys with information and questions. The next chapter will not only answer a good amount of the ones you have so far, plus the meaning of a lot of the terminology that has been used here, but it will also add a larger number of characters and plot-lines. So... If I kept writing, I would have probably drowned you guys in info and I would have drowned myself in writing.
> 
> Either way, I truly hope you guys enjoyed this chapter! Don't forget to let me know what you thought about it, what you loved, hated, or didn't care bout (Something Akaashi would say here haha). 
> 
> I wish you guys a wonderful weekend, don't forget to check out the rest of fics in this series and hit me up on tumblr if you want!  
> http://ahominebaka.tumblr.com/


	6. The Brother & His Dog

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Akaashi, what-” Bokuto began to speak, but Akaashi quickly put his hand on his mouth to silence him.
> 
> “Don’t talk, they could be here already.” He whispered as he moved away and began to take off his sweater and shirt. He made them a ball and hid them behind his closet, almost as if he feared to have people find out he worked in a cafeteria. He grabbed a new clean shirt and put it on with swift moves before turning back to Bokuto, “No matter what happens, don’t turn on the lights and most importantly, do NOT, under any circumstance come out until I tell you to.” He put his hands on Bokuto’s cheeks, “Are you listening to what I’m saying?”
> 
> Bokuto hesitated as he looked around in confusion and then nodded, “No lights, and I stay here; I got it.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello, everyone!  
> Oh boy writing this chapter was pretty intense! I hope you guys enjoy it! Haha. 
> 
> I don't have much to say in here, other than how much I love writing poetic Bokuto, and giving you guys the two songs I used for this chapter!
> 
> Chromatics - Tick Of The Clock ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vWD7k6TrJ-g )  
> Japan is a Land of Warriors - Overkill B-Sides ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=opZRh_me9S4 )
> 
> I hope you guys enjoy it and don't forget to check out this post with the list of upcoming fics! <333 
> 
> http://ahominebaka.tumblr.com/post/142128872063/sunshine-park-academy-list  
> http://ahominebaka.tumblr.com

The night was approaching and that somehow began to make Bokuto uncomfortable. It seemed to be the right feeling because Akaashi’s face hadn’t changed for the past hour. His dullness and boredom were gone, and instead, his sharp eyes moved around searching through the faces of the large crowd that surrounded them, almost as if he was looking for familiar eyes to meet.

They walked, their steps quickening and their silence disturbing. They crossed through the streets, faster as the sky darkened. Akaashi moved his arm back to grab Bokuto’s hand, Bokuto glanced down as he followed, but didn’t say a word. He wasn’t even in the mood to blush or feel happy at the gesture. If anything, he knew Akaashi holding his hand in this state of mind didn’t mean the good news anyone else would expect.

Finally, they arrived at Akaashi’s building, with fast movements; they climbed up the stairs reaching the apartment. Once they both were inside, Akaashi turned around and closed the door, turning every key and lock he could, making sure the door was shut tight. Without saying a word, he grabbed Bokuto by the arm and gently dragged him into his room, closing the door in there as well. He glanced down at his watch and then looked out the window to see if the sun had finally set. The outside had darkened entirely, only leaving the flashing lights of the establishments to illuminate the room.

“Akaashi, what-” Bokuto began to speak, but Akaashi quickly put his hand on his mouth to silence him.

“Don’t talk, they could be here already.” He whispered as he moved away and began to take off his sweater and shirt. He made them a ball and hid them behind his closet, almost as if he feared to have people find out he worked in a cafeteria. He grabbed a new clean shirt and put it on with swift moves before turning back to Bokuto, “No matter what happens, don’t turn on the lights and most importantly, do NOT, under any circumstance come out until I tell you to.” He put his hands on Bokuto’s cheeks, “Are you listening to what I’m saying?”

Bokuto hesitated as he looked around in confusion and then nodded, “No lights, and I stay here; I got it.”

Akaashi nodded as well, “They can’t know you’re here okay? If they do, they will come after you and that won’t be good.”

Bokuto shook his head slowly, “No, it wouldn’t… But what is happening? Who is coming?”

Akaashi studied Bokuto’s expression, he opened his mouth and closed it once more unsure of what to say, but then he sighed and spoke, “They a-” Before he could finish, they heard a loud banging on the door, not a knocking, a full on enraged banging. Akaashi’s face shifted and his body tensed up, moving his thumb and index finger across his lips as if he was closing a zipper, he signaled Bokuto to remain silent before turning around and exiting the room, leaving him by himself and in complete silence.

A silence interrupted by another loud banging, this time, more desperate than before. The sound was repeated a few times while Bokuto kneeled down and approached the big keyhole on the door, trying to get a view of what was going on in the living room.

He could see that Akaashi was standing still, his hands in his pocket and his body leaning against the living-room window. Wasn't he going to open the door? Was he hoping they would go away? No… He knew what was coming up next. 

With a sudden noise, the door burst open, every lock exploding with a loud noise and falling on the ground, accompanied by chunks of wood.

Two men emerged from the outside hallway, entering through the kitchen and towards the living room.

“My my, what a rude host.” A man with a soft voice spoke, his tone cheerful and almost happy. His hair was light brown and it was neatly kept. His face was delicate and beautiful, almost too gentle to have broken down a door.

Another man followed behind him, his hair was blond with two dark stripes along his head. His eyes were filled with hostility and even the sight made Bokuto shiver from the other side of the room.

“Yahaba.” Akaashi spoke from where he was standing, his appearance  still relaxed. “I see you brought the Mad Dog, any reason?”

The first man laughed softly, “Well, it was him or a locksmith.” He shrugged, “He’s much cheaper when it comes to paperwork.” He patted the other’s man head.

Akaashi sighed, “What do you want?”

Yahaba looked around the room, taking slow and relaxed steps around the couch and walking to the opposite window, his hands in his pockets and his eyes cold in comparison to the sweetness of his face, “You seriously manage to live in this shit-hole?”

The man nicknamed ‘mad dog’ snorted while crossing his arms, his eyes piercing Akaashi’s presence almost as if he wanted to hurt him just with his a stare.

“You don’t like it? I find it quite comforting.” Akaashi replied in a mocking tone.

Yahaba turned to him but didn’t move. They watched each other for long seconds, “You think this is your home?” He finally spoke, his tone daring and aggressive.

Akaashi shrugged, “Yeah, I guess.”

Yahaba chuckled, “I never liked you, Akaashi…” He sighed as he looked around the room, “But you are my brother… I had no choice but to like you…”

“Never liked you either, Yahaba. And I am not your brother.” Akaashi replied cuttingly.

He turned to him with slight surprise, “You are my brother, and you have a father.” This time, his voice dropped and the tension of his body shifted, showing how ready he was to beat Akaashi to a pulp if necessary. “The Oyabun wishes for your return.”  

Akaashi chuckled, his body almost as tense as Yahaba’s, “The Oyabun wants far too many things, impossible to fulfill his every wish.”

Yahaba nodded slowly, circling the room and shooting glares at the Mad Dog every once in a while, “Akaashi… I know this might be hard for you to understand, after all, you’ve never really been the sharpest tool in the shed…” He chuckled, “But when Father wants something, we give it to him.”

Akaashi nodded, “But he isn’t my father.”

“He isn’t?” Yahaba asked with a tense smirk. He sat down on one of the individual sofa’s, crossing his legs and looking even more delicate than before, “I don’t recall you turning him down when he offered to take you in.” He examined his nails, “In fact, I think you spent a good amount of years as a family member… That is until he made you his Shateigashira.”

Akaashi sighed, “I’d ask if you’re doing this out of jealousy for my position, but you are the Wakagashira, so why are you really here?”

Yahaba frowned, “Oh no, I personally don’t care if you come back or not.” He laughed and glanced at the Mad Dog who chuckled with him, “In fact, things have gone smoother since you left.” He shrugged, “But you see… Father is sick.”

Akaashi hesitated, “I know, he’s been sick for a while.”

“Yes…” Yahaba’s face changed, and his tone shifted into a more serious and personal one, “But he is worse... He is dying, Akaashi, and he wants you back in the business before he passes away.”

He remained silent for a few seconds, thinking, “I don’t want to be back in the business.”

Yahaba broke into the loudest laughter, almost disrupting the remaining peace in the building Bokuto couldn't help but think how disturbing his mood changes were... “You think we care? You always were a lousy yakuza, brother, but not idiotic enough to not know how little the Oyabun cares about your personal wishes.” He laughed a bit more.

“I wasn’t lousy; I was perfect at my job. A job I grew tired of, so I will NOT go back. Not even if the Oyabun himself shows up.” Akaashi hissed back.

Yahaba stood up and walked towards him, “You were lousy, covering yourself with those stupid tattoos and making them visible. You left because of your lack of respect, not because you grew tired of it.” His words felt like knives even for Bokuto, and his tone was sharp and threatening as he stood inches from Akaashi.

Without even thinking twice, Akaashi grabbed him by the neck, his fingers circling his skin and throat and pushing him against the wall, “Do not talk to me about respect when even the smallest speck of the one you have is only thanks to me.” Akaashi’s voice sounded angered by the sole idea of putting up with Yahaba’s behavior, “I chose to leave because of how fucked up you all are. Family? My ass, you guys are a bunch of animals that decided to form a tribe and fuck up people’s lives!”

As the Mad Dog seemed ready to charge against Akaashi, Yahaba lifted his hand to stop him. His eyes cold as ice and his relaxed face only made him look even more threatening. “I know.” He replied leaving a hint of surprise inside everyone in the room, even Bokuto himself felt surprised at his response. “As I said, I don’t care if you come back or not. If you don’t, I understand your reasons just like I didn’t stop you from leaving that night.” He carefully grabbed Akaashi’s hand and gripped it tightly, moving it away from his neck and twisting his bones with a simple touch of his fingers.

Akaashi fell to his knees, trying to contain the pain he was feeling from his wrist to his shoulder, “Then why are you here?” He asked almost out of breath.

Yahaba still didn’t let go, he looked down at him with soft eyes as he tightened his grip on Akaashi’s arm, hurting him even further, “As I said, father is dying. He wants you back. I am only here doing my job and no offense but… You’re in no position to deny us your return.”

As he spoke those last words, he made a final twist to Akaashi’s arm, making a cracking sound even audible from Bokuto’s position. Akaashi groaned loudly in pain, clenching his teeth and trying to contain himself from jumping on Yahaba and beating him up. He remained silent for a few seconds, catching his breath from the rush of pain, “I… I said no.” He finally spoke.

Yahaba sighed and stepped away, “Stubborn, as always.” He walked towards the Mad Dog, “I will give you some time to… Reconsider. But I can’t promise my patience will be visible through my actions.” He giggled. “I will see you around, my sweet brother.”

Both men walked out of the apartment, slamming the door shut after them. 

Without even thinking twice about it, Bokuto opened the door and rushed to Akaashi who was lying on the floor with his arm wrapped against his chest.

“Akaashi, Akaashi!” He kneeled next to him, “Are you okay?”

Akaashi groaned while holding his arm, “I told you to not come out until I knew it would be safe.” He complained.

Bokuto chuckled softly, “Seriously, you’re impossible…” He carefully put his arms around Akaashi’s shoulders, “Come on, let me see your arm…”

After a few more minutes of insisting, Akaashi finally moved and showed his arm to Bokuto. He didn’t need a medical degree to know it was broken in multiple places, including the wrist itself which was entirely twisted. “We… We need to take you to a hospital.” Bokuto finally said to him, while his hands shook at the hesitation of whether to touch him or not.

Akaashi immediately shook his head, “No way. They’ll know.”

Bokuto looked into his eyes with shock, “You can’t tell me you’ll just stay like this!”

He shook his head while taking deep breaths, “Going to a doctor is not the same as going to a hospital.”

Bokuto hesitated before nodding, “Well where do I take you?!”

They both carefully stood up and left the apartment. As soon as they stepped outside the apartment building, the vivid streets surrounded them with loud music and the people enveloped them, almost pushing them in every direction. Bokuto stood next to Akaashi, his arm over his shoulder as he was carefully moving him in the right directions to avoid letting someone from the drunken crowd push him and break his arm even more.

They moved through the streets, entering the deep thick sides of a dark neighborhood, probably at some point they left Roppongi behind, Bokuto wasn’t sure anymore… 

He only knew his surroundings were old, every house looked as if it was falling apart or it had been built centuries ago. The architecture and style were old; the streets were emptier the further they walked, until they were alone in complete silence, only hearing the sounds of cats fighting in the distance or police sirens passing by a few blocks away.

After a few long minutes, they finally arrived at one of the houses. The garden that surrounded it was in shambles, weed growing everywhere, the structure of what used to be statues and decoration was almost ashes on the ground… Even the house itself was breaking down and falling in pieces. Wherever they were, Bokuto didn’t have a good feeling about this, and if it was up to him they would turn around and go to a proper hospital.

“Let’s go before anyone sees us.” Akaashi mumbled, gently nudging Bokuto to move forward.

They both walked inside, stepping through the broken down path that went from the main gates of the garden towards the front door of the house. Bokuto looked around for a bell to ring, but the house seemed far too old to have anything similar to what could be considered part of the modern world. Immediately and with a sigh, Akaashi leaned forward and knocked heavily on the soft door, probably too heavily. Was it a Yakuza thing to bang on a door instead of knocking?

Silence, no lights, no sound, no traces of anyone living in the premises… But just as Bokuto was about to point that out, a man spoke from the other side of the door, his voice low and his tone serious and discreet, “Who is it?”

“Akaashi…” He replied almost shyly.

Seconds after he pronounced his own name, the door opened from side to side, revealing a thin man standing on the other side. His black hair sticking straight up and his eyes going from Bokuto to Akaashi, studying them with curiosity. Once his eyes fell on Akaashi, he stared at him.

“Yahaba?” He asked as he saw the arm.

Akaashi nodded slowly, "Hello, Kindachi..." 

"Hello, Akaashi," he replied as he hesitated but then moved his head to signal them that they could come in.

The house was as old on the inside as it looked from the outside. The furniture was older than any of the antiques Bokuto had seen in the store where he bought the typewriter, the place was a mess, crumbling to the ground or even further since the creaking sounds the floor made with every step they took made Bokuto hesitate, wondering if maybe he was going to go through a hole at some point. It definitely had to be a Yakuza thing to live in shit-holes...

In silence they were guided through doors and hallways, deeper each time; sometimes going down the stairs, others simply walking through endless rooms. Finally, they arrived at a white cold room. It looked like a doctor’s office, except in the middle, instead of a bed for patients; they had a metal table that looked more like those you see on TV underneath a corpse. Bokuto gulped loudly as he turned to Akaashi who didn’t seem to mind any of this.

“Lie down.” A different man ordered.

Only then Bokuto realized the room wasn't empty. In a corner, a few curtains hid what were beds with patients, and a man with a bored expression and cold eyes stood there wearing a white coat. His hair was black and his body tall and thin. 

Akaashi obeyed without hesitating, leaving Bokuto to stand alone by a small desk covered in papers and pictures. The man began to examine Akaashi’s arms closer, moving it around without caring for the pain or how badly it looked like.

“This is definitely your brother’s work.” He mumbled in concentration.

Akaashi rolled his eyes before flinching once more at the pain, “Can’t you just do your job, Kunimi?”

The man sighed and nodded, “I’m guessing he went after you? Everyone knows the Oyabun is ready to send an army to get you back.” He shrugged, “In a way, you got off easy.”

“Easy?!”  Bokuto exclaimed unable to bite his tongue.

Kunimi, Kindachi, and Akaashi turned to him, their eyes confused and intrigued. Maybe this happened often when you’re associated to the Yakuza? Bokuto didn’t know, he wouldn’t know. He wasn’t used to this type of incidents going on. This was far too different for his daily life. He had gone from crafting paper flowers with three-year-olds to dragging an ex-yakuza with an obliterated arm to a shady doctor in the middle of nowhere.

Kindachi nodded to the rest of men and walked out of the room, going back to the entrance of the house.

“Well… It is just an arm?” Kunimi spoke with indifference before turning back to Akaashi, “Who is he, by the way?”

Akaashi sighed before resting his head back on the table, “A friend.”

Kunimi nodded while looking back at the arm, “No offense, Akaashi… But wouldn’t it be easier to just go back? I mean, sure, you had your troubles with the gang, but who doesn’t?”

Akaashi shook his head, “I’m done with that lifestyle, it’s nothing but ugly business.”

“You think?” Kunimi sounded surprised, “We aren’t that bad. I mean, we do help out whenever we have to.” He pointed out, “Everyone knows we helped out a lot more and a lot faster than the government did back when the tsunami destroyed a good chunk of the country.”

Akaashi turned to him with cold eyes, “Oh yes, deploying some relief for the country is definitely going to make up for the rest of days I have to do the things you guys do.” He shook his head, “I am done.”

Bokuto cleared his throat, “Okay, could anyone explain a bit of what’s going on?” He felt a bit uncomfortable for having to ask such question. Somehow he felt it was his responsibility to know all those names they continued to say and to be more informed when it came to the Yakuza general matters.

Both men turned to him; Kunimi lifted an eyebrow and scanned him with his eyes before turning back to Akaashi, “I see you got yourself a non-yakuza.” He chuckled, continuing to ignore Bokuto’s confusion.

Akaashi shook his head and hesitated, “He… He is the opposite.” He looked away.

Kunimi sighed and nodded, “Well… Your arm isn’t broken.”

They both stared at him before speaking in unison, “It’s not?”

He shook his head, “It’s dislocated. In pretty much every place you can possibly dislocate an arm” He chuckled, “But when I say you got off easy, I mean your brother is very well known for breaking people’s bones. He knows he didn’t break your arm.”

Bokuto nodded slowly, “Okay… Can you heal him?”

“Of course.” Kunimi stood up, “You will have to help, though.” He said looking back at him.

Bokuto hesitated, “…Help?”

Kunimi looked at Akaashi first, and then back at Bokuto. He took a deep breath before nodding, “You’re going to have to hold him down…”

 

\-------

 

Bokuto sat on the back of a cab. His eyes stared outside the window, watching the people they passed by and counting the many streets they had gone through. The stars shone brightly, even through the lights of the buildings. How contradicting. The beauty of the night caused so much pain to his beloved Akaashi…

He looked to his other side, where he found the black-haired and tattooed man lying against his chest, his eyes closed and his chest moving slowly up and down as he breathed in his deep sleep. He carefully caressed his hair, even though he was drugged up enough to not notice a thing.

He could still hear his cries in his head, the way the strange doctor called Kunimi continued to twist his arm back into place, every inch cracking and making horrible sounds as the bones shifted and went back to normal, making his arm look like a human one once more. Akaashi’s voice broke with every move, his eyes shut tight and his head pushed back as he buried his nails into Bokuto’s skin. He clenched his teeth to stop the screams from coming out, but the doctor wouldn’t give him a break. "It would be easier to get it done as fast as possible", he kept saying over and over as one more bone cracked going back into place, making Akaashi’s mouth open widely, emitting the most broken and horrific cry Bokuto had ever heard in his life. Slow tears running down his temples and onto the table as he gasped for air and tried to speak, “Stop…” He would mutter every once in a while, but the doctor would just shake his head and say that was the pain talking before going one more time.

Bokuto closed his eyes and sighed, leaning his head back on the seat and looking back outside the window. How mundane people’s lives were. How abnormal his life felt that day… He thought of his coworkers, wondering if they could ever imagine the hell he had just gone through. The peace and quiet of Akaashi’s company had become the broken bones and screams of pain he never expected to live through, and the sole idea of leaving his precious Akaashi to go through that himself terrified him. He had to do something, help him in a way… End his suffering and make him happy once and for all…

The cab stopped, and Bokuto shuffled through his pocket, reaching down at the last spare of change he had for the rest of the month. He exited the cab and grabbed his dark haired boy, lifting him in his arms and carrying him into the building. He would have taken him to his own apartment, a place where the Yakuza wouldn’t know where to look, a safe haven for him… But he knew the moment Akaashi woke up in an unknown place, he would not only not be pleased, but he would probably get really angry and do or say something stupid.

He moved up the stairs and kicked the already broken door open, walking towards the room and carefully putting Akaashi on the bed. He softly mumbled something in his sleep as he moved away from Bokuto’s grasp. He looked so peaceful, so content…

Bokuto sighed and just as he was about to go back to the front door to try to fix it, he felt Akaashi’s warm fingers caressing his hand.

“Please stay…” He mumbled barely able to keep his eyes open, “Please don’t... Leave me…”

Bokuto’s mouth formed a soft smile, he would have been happy if it wasn’t because of how broken and sad his voice sounded… Was it the drugs? Was it the sadness that his past caused him? It didn’t matter, nothing mattered when it came to making Akaashi the happiest man in the world. 

Without hesitating, Bokuto sat on the bed first, and then lied next to him, leaning his back against the wall and putting an arm over Akaashi who immediately followed his movements and rested his head on Bokuto’s stomach, hugging him and feeling the warmth of his body.

Tiredly, Bokuto played with Akaashi’s black and soft locks, his fingers tangled through his hair. He watched the love of his life sleep, he watched him quietly move every now and then but never letting Bokuto go, almost as if he feared to lose him and never seeing him again.

“I will make you happy, Akaashi… Even if my life depends on it, I will protect you and make you happy…” Bokuto muttered as he fell asleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This fic is so different to the rest of the series... Aghhh I really hope you guys are enjoying it! Don't forget to let me know down in the comments what you thought, liked, hated, or simply enjoyed about this chapter! What do you think about our new 4 characters? Hahaha 
> 
> Also, should I add Kunimi and Kindachi to the fic list?! 
> 
> Thank you once again guys, and I hope you have a terrific week!! <333  
> http://ahominebaka.tumblr.com


	7. The Questions Game

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "You tell me things about yourself, I tell you things about myself." He shrugged, "I'm not going to give away information about my own life just because you're trying to get it out of me." 
> 
> Akaashi frowned, "I'm not trying-"
> 
> "You are, and even if you weren't, you like me enough to ask me to stick around when you're high off your mind. So you get a question for every answer you give." He proposed with a daring tone, not even sure if his theory was right.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys!!   
> I hope youre all doing okay! I have a few things to say so here we go;   
> 1- My roadtrip went wonderfully!   
> 2-I arrived home and found out my PCs hard disk fried like a chicken dipped in oil and left on the stove.   
> 3-Ive lost absolutely everything.   
> 4-I took it to get it fixed and probably will have it back tomorrow.   
> 5-i might take a bit longer to post Glassed Views and The Odd Mixs chapter for obvious reasons... So Im very very sorry guys <333   
> Either way, please enjoy this chapter! <33333
> 
> http://ahominebaka.tumblr.com/

A clicking sound, the hesitation, a deep breath, the soft sound of paper caressed against human skin, the pen scratching the surface of the laminated white sheet, scribbles, and stains, the sun coming up and leaving the night behind... And yet the clicking sound, the constant noise of ideas coming alive on a whitened surface, the short stops looking for the right words, the right feeling to give magic its way continued through the hours... 

Bokuto slowly opened his eyes, his mind swimming through the noise and sounds, his eyes searching through the room as he attempted to figure out if all these thoughts had been part of a dream. 

He looked at the end of the bed, the window blinding his view as the sun hit straight to his eyes. Slowly and sleepily he moved his hand up, shadowing half of his face, just enough to get a proper look at what was going on. 

Akaashi. He was sitting at his desk, his fuzzy hair messed up by the long night, his face tired and his cheeks covered in ink stains. His clothes were those of the night before, except for the hoodie he was wearing. Bokuto could recognize it anywhere since it belonged to him. He smiled at the thought of Akaashi wearing his clothes and watched him.

Watched the way his fingers ran through the letters on the typewriter, the way his eyes focused on every movement, the smoke from the ashtray making its way out the window, the cigarette untouched and the ashes falling on the crystal glass making it obvious it had been long minutes since Akaashi took the last drag. 

"I see you are enjoying my present." Bokuto spoke, his voice rusty and sleepy as he lifted his torso, resting his weight on his elbows. 

Akaashi's fingers stopped, his eyes looking down at the machine and his lips shaking as he tried to find the right words. 

"How long have you been up?" Bokuto added, helping him out in the awkwardness of the situation. He could see Akaashi's shyness showing on his cheeks, the fear of getting caught indulging on what he referred to as -Bokutos charity-. 

He cleared his throat and turned around to him for the first time in the day, "I woke up in the middle of the night and then I couldn't really go back to sleep." 

Bokuto sat up and frowned, "Why not? Are you okay?"

He nodded and slowly lifted up his arm, showing the bandages mostly torn and stained with ink, "I couldn't go back to sleep because of the pain... And then it got itchy under the bandages" 

Bokuto rose to his feet and rushed to his side "What did you do?! Why are you typing with the arm like this?? And why didn't you wake me up??" 

Akaashi hesitated, his eyes filled with confusion as he tried to figure out which question to answer first, "I didn't use this arm... And there was nothing you could do..." 

Bokuto carefully held his hand, his fingers examining the torn and stained bandages while his eyes looked up at him and then back down at his arm, "The doctor gave me medicines..." He sighed, "Well, I will have to clean this up..." 

Akaashi quickly pulled his arm away, probably hurting himself in the process. His eyes glaring back at Bokuto with a feeling that almost made him shiver. 

"I don't need you to do anything. I'm not one of your students." He said with a deep and almost angry voice. 

Bokuto looked into his eyes for a few seconds, part of him feeling too tired to put up with his cold attitude. For a short second, he even considered standing up and walking out... But then Akaashi's eyes shifted, leaving place to those of a wounded animal wanting to be fearless yet too scarred to be easy going around strangers. Slowly and without the need of Bokuto to say a word, he moved his hand back against his, his eyes looking away and his lower lip hiding in a bite. 

Without thinking twice about it, Bokuto began to take off the dirty bandages, his fingers slowly caressing Akaashi's skin and looking down at his tattoos as they got mixed with the ink that didn't belong to his tattoos. 

"Do you have a med-kit anywhere around?" He asked with a low voice. 

Akaashi nodded slowly, "In the bathroom." 

Bokuto stood up and walked to it, hearing the soft clicking sound of the typewriter resounding through the room, "No typing, Akaashi!" He said as he looked for the kit. 

Seconds later, he returned to the room, sitting on the bed and looking back at the black haired man who sat on the chair with eyes mixed in anger and fear. 

"Why are you still here?" He asked in a half cuttingly way. 

Bokuto chuckled, pouring some alcohol on the large piece of cotton and slowly running it against Akaashi's skin, "You asked me to stay." 

Akaashi sighed, a deep sound almost as if he was angry at himself, "Why did you do it? Don't you have work today?" 

Bokuto shook his head, his fingers slowly trailing down his skin almost forgetting his task was to clean the ink stains and not caress his arm, his eyes were not looking up as he examined the tattoos. He could see flowers, colorful and of all sizes, animals, a thin path next to a river that traveled up to his shoulder... A complete contrast from the aggressiveness of the numbers and daggers from his neck, a tattoo that denoted the quietness and calm of his soul, the peace and need for color... "I don't have work today... And I will do whatever you ask of me." He said in almost a whisper, partly because of the amazement he felt inside of him as he stared at the art of Akaashi's arm. He had always seen his tattoos, but never really looked at them, examining the smallest inked pores and the shape they formed. 

Akaashi remained silent for a while, his eyes looking down at Bokuto and his skin electrified by the slow and gentle touch, too gentle for his experience, "You are still not answering why you're here." He asked with hesitation. 

Bokutos eyes looked up, his soft smile widening as he saw the redness of Akaashi's cheeks and the nervousness in his eyes, "I told you, you asked-"

"I mean after all you've seen and learned about me, why are you still here?" He asked once more, interrupting Bokuto and leaving him in silent thoughts. 

Bokuto sighed and reached into his jacket, grabbing clean bandages that the doctor had given him the previous night, "Why should I leave?" He chuckled as his hands circled Akaashi's arm, moving the thin bandages and placing them on his skin, "I already told you, I have a goal in mind when it comes to you."

Akaashi tilted his head, narrowing his eyes "You still plan on making me fall in love with you?" 

Bokuto nodded, "I am, and I must say I am a very stubborn man so... Unless you tell me to go away, I won't." 

"Unless I tell you to go away?" Akaashi repeated with confusion. 

Bokuto chuckled and looked up to him, "Well, I already said I will do whatever you ask of me, even if it is to leave you alone." 

Akaashi shook his head and shrugged, "okay, I get that you're an idiot with fairy tales stuck in your head, but I got my arm dislocated by my brother who's asking me to go back to the biggest criminal organization this country has ever seen. I get that you have lived an apple pie life and you have no understanding of what danger means, but this is crossing the line of you being suicidal." 

Bokuto laughed loudly before shaking his head, "Oh, boy... You still fixed on assuming I had a pretty past just because Im a kindergarten teacher?" 

Akaashi shrugged once more, "Well, why else work with children unless you're not damaged?" 

Bokuto finished the bandages in silence. Once he was done, he let go of Akaashi's arm and grabbed the bottle of painkillers. He handed them to him and then lied on his side, his weight resting on one elbow, "What is your book about?"

Akaashi hesitated, looking at the typewriter and then back at Bokuto, "What does that-" 

"You tell me things about yourself, I tell you things about myself." He shrugged, "I'm not going to give away information about my own life just because you're trying to get it out of me." 

Akaashi frowned, "I'm not trying-"

"You are, and even if you weren't, you like me enough to ask me to stick around when you're high off your mind. So you get a question for every answer you give." He proposed with a daring tone, not even sure if his theory was right. 

Akaashi remained silent for a while, studying Bokutos expression and trying to figure out how serious he was about this. Looking back at the typewriter and then at him. He took one of the pills and then lit a new cigarette, "Fine. Ask away." 

Bokuto grinned and nodded with eager, "What is your-"

"Ask something else." Akaashi mumbled with the cigarette between his lips. 

Bokuto sighed and thought for a long while, "Okay, well... Explain what this whole mess is about." He pointed at the arm he had just cleaned and covered in bandages. 

Akaashi exhaled the smoke, thinking and looking out the window, "My brother..." 

Bokuto nodded, listening intently, "But you have said he's not your brother." 

Akaashi nodded as well, looking back to him and sighing, ready to give an explanation. "When I was about... 13, I got caught... With a male friend. Our families were highly regarded, so everyone found out and we became the talk of everyone in our village. My friend quickly apologized to his family and gave some stupid excuse that I don't even remember. They acted as if nothing had ever happened, and I think he's now married to some poor naive woman."

Bokuto listened, resting his head on his hand and toying with the bottle of pills with the other, "But you didn't do that." 

Akaashi shook his head, "I told the truth, I told them I like men and I wasn't going to pretend nothing had ever happened. My father tried everything to... Rectify my attitude, but then it all came down to him kicking me out." He sighed and tapped the cigarette against the ashtray, "I lived on the streets for a while, starving and freezing most of the time, others I had to fight for my meals and a warm corner under a bridge... And then I ended up in Tokyo, getting into a fight with the wrong man in the wrong place at the wrong time." He chuckled, "The son of a Yakuza leader." 

"Damn..." Bokuto mumbled between his breath. 

Akaashi chuckled, "Yeah... I guess the only reason I'm alive to this day is because I won the fight. The leader saw it all... And then offered me shelter, a home, a family to belong." 

"A family?" Bokuto asked with confusion. 

"The Yakuza are a family, one chosen by fate and oneself and not by blood. They protect each other, they are one, and there is pure respect among each member." Akaashi explained, "The Oyabun is the leader, the father of everyone, the boss. The rest are brothers and their ranks follow a specific scale. Yahaba, my brother, he is the Wakagashira. He's like the Oyabuns right hand, he is his eyes and voice wherever the Oyabun himself can't be. The freckled man you met? Yamaguchi? Hes the Saiko-Komon, the Oyabuns left hand, mostly in charge of administration or more like an advisor." 

Bokuto listened carefully, "And you were?" 

"I was the Shategashira, one rank below Yahaba. I was in charge of smaller districts, and more specific matters." He sighed, "I obviously climbed up to that rank through the years and I was initially offered Yahaba's position, but I turned it down because I was already considering leaving that world behind."

"You were offered his position??" Bokuto asked in amazement.

Akaashi tilted his head, "Well when the Oyabun offers you a position, he's not really offering it... But I turned it down anyways and only worked as a Shategashira for a few weeks before I left." He cleared his throat, "Everyone in the family knows the only reason I am still alive is because from the day I won that fight back when I was just a kid... I became the Oyabuns real son and his favorite." 

Bokuto hesitated, blinking a few times in silence trying to figure out how to formulate his next question, "Why did you leave, then?" 

Akaashi looked back into his eyes and smiled, "I gave you an answer, it's your turn." 

Bokuto groaned and then chuckled, closing his eyes and giving up, "Fine... Ask whatever you want." 

"Your parents." He replied. 

Bokuto tilted his head, "What about them?" 

Akaashi shrugged, inhaling the smoke from his cigarette, "They gave you a proper childhood and loved you very very much." 

Bokuto hesitated, his eyes filled with happy memories, "They did while they could, yes."

Akaashi frowned, "While they could?"

Bokuto remained still, almost not breathing and his eyes fixed in the distance. After a while, he looked back into Akaashis eyes and smiled softly, "They died in a car accident when I was 10." 

Akaashis body froze and his face went from white to red in seconds, "I... Im sorry..." He mumbled. 

Bokuto shook his head, "It happened a long time ago." 

The black haired man hesitated before speaking again, "Where did you go after that?" 

Bokuto shrugged, "Forster home for a while, and then when I was 16 I was able to get my emancipation and worked myself through high school and university." 

"Is that why you became a teacher?" Akaashi asked, his mind tangled in curiosity. 

Bokuto shrugged, "I guess. I like children, they make me happy and erase the horrible and serious side of life. I like that." He chuckled, "And you just gave me two extra questions." 

Akaashi groaned and rolled his eyes, "Fine, ask." 

"Why did you leave?" He repeated his initial question. 

Akaashi shrugged, "Family or not, people who tend to live in that world are hyenas thirsty for blood and respect. They are savages and the moment you show any weakness they eat you alive. I never wanted to be a monk, but I wanted to live an honest life... It was time to turn the page."

Bokuto nodded, "Why do they want you back?" 

Akaashi chuckled, "That whole mess is because of the Oyabun. As I said, I am his favorite and he is fixated on making me the next leader."

Bokuto bit his lower lip trying to think of a question, "Is it safe to live here? I mean, aren't they working around here?" 

Akaashi shook his head, "The Yakuza have barely touched this grounds in a while, I mostly worked and lived in Shinjuku, but when I left I moved in with Hinata. I met him during one of my only jobs out here, you might remember his boss wasn't very fond of me."

Bokuto nodded and sighed, "Well, your turn."

Akaashi tilted his head, "Why are you still here?" 

Bokuto rolled his eyes and lied on his back, "Because once when I was a child my mother told me the current carries everything down a river, the stones on the way are only harmed by their will to work against the currents, but if like a soft feather you let yourself be carried around and accept things as they are... You will end up at some point in the calmest and most m beautiful waters you've ever seen." 

Akaashi frowned, "So you're telling me you're putting yourself in danger just to go with the flow?" 

Bokuto chuckled and turned to him, "What Im saying is, dangerous or not, I drown in your essence. From the day I saw you, I knew I wanted to be tied up to whatever mess you came with, and sure, I did not expect to get involved with the yakuza, but this isn't about them or Hinata, or my coworkers, this is about you. I can't picture myself without you because you are the river."

Akaashi remained silent for a bit, his mouth slightly open and his cheeks pink, "I..." 

Bokuto chuckled, "I know, I know my analogies are weird, my friends always say that."

Akaashi shook his head, "I think they are beautiful..." 

Bokuto looked at him with confusion and curiosity, they watched each other for a while, in silence and a softness in their eyes they had never felt before. 

"Why don't you move in with me?" Bokuto asked out of the blue. 

Akaashi frowned, "Why would I do something like that??"

Bokuto sat up, "Because they are looking for you, you'd be safer with me!"

Akaashi sighed, "No I wouldn't, I would only be putting you in danger." 

"But-" He began, ready to reproach Akaashis reply. 

"My turn." The tattooed man interrupted him. He thought for a while, trying to come up with a question until finally he gave up and sighed, "Whats your favorite movie?"

Bokuto stared at him, "...Seriously?"

Akaashi rolled his eyes, "I can't think of anything else! Plus we need to lighten up the mood so just answer the damn question!"

Bokuto bit his lips trying to hide his laughter and then sighed, "My favorite movie?" 

Akaashi nodded, "Thats right." 

Bokuto hesitated, "Yeah... Well..." He cleared his throat nervously, "My favorite movie is..." 

Akaashi groaned, "come on! Youve told me your past, Ive told you about my shady yakuza family, it can't be so bad so just-"

"Dirty dancing." Bokuto interrupted him, speaking as fast as he could. 

Akaashi hesitated, thinking through the two words he just heard, "...Dirty..."

Bokuto nodded, "Dirty Dancing, my favorite movie is Dirty Dancing..."

Akaashi looked around trying to hold back the laughter, "Dirty Dancing..." He mumbled. 

Bokuto frowned, "Excuse you, but it's a fantastic movie and I cry every time, okay?" 

Akaashi broke into a loud laughter, his cigarette almost falling from his fingers, "What is the next thing I'll hear? You also know the dance??" 

Bokuto glared at him offendedly and looked away, making Akaashi resume his laughter and look at him in shock, "...Oh my god, you know the dance!" 

Bokuto sighed, "Of course I know the dance, and let me tell you Im excellent with the final move..." 

Akaashi hesitated, "...The final move?" 

Bokuto tilted his head, "Yeah, you know when Johnny picks Baby up?" 

Akaashi nodded slowly, "Yeah...?"

He shrugged, "I can do that." 

"You..." Akaashi began, mumbling the words, "You can?" 

Bokuto nodded, "Yes." He chuckled, "Why? Do you want to do it?" 

Akaashi hesitated, he opened his mouth to ay something but instead he remained silent.

\----

Minutes later, Akaashi and Bokuto were standing on opposite sides of the cleared up living room with _(I've Had) The Time Of My Life_ playing in the background.

"I can't believe Im doing this..." Akaashi mumbled while shaking his head, trying to contain his laughter. 

Bokuto chuckled extending his arms, "Come on, just come on and jump, I'll pick you up. I've done it a thousand times." 

Akaashi looked around biting his lower lip, "This is stupid..." 

Bokuto giggled, "Just do it, you want to do it otherwise we wouldn't be standing here, come on." 

Without saying another word and without giving himself the time to think any further, Akaashi ran towards Bokuto, jumping towards him once he was close enough. Bokuto grabbed him by his hips, lifting him up above his head and looking up into his eyes. Akaashis body tensed as he remained lifted, his torsos weight being lifted by his healthy hand against Bokutos thick shoulder. 

Slowly and almost effortlessly, Bokuto did a slow circle before carefully bringing him down. Their eyes meeting each other as Bokuto slowly put Akaashi on the grown. 

Silence... 

Akaashi cleared his throat and looked around, avoiding Bokutos gaze "So... So you want to stay over for dinner?" 

Bokuto smiled, his eyes looking down at Akaashis lips, "That sounds wonderful..." 

Before either of them could say another word and acting almost in complete sync, they both moved closer, Bokuto wrapping his arms around Akaashis hip, and Akaashi tangling his arms around Bokutos neck. Their lips met with an undying fire, a deep need. 

Bokuto lifted him up once more, and carefully carried him into the room towards the bed, and closing the door after them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dirty Dancing is a great movie and I support Bokutos life choices... Hahahaha 
> 
> I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter!! Dont forget to tell me what you loved, hated, or thought about it down in the comments! Also, yay or nay to dirty dancing? What about dirty dancing 2? hahaha 
> 
> If you havent seen them, now you know what to do while you wait for the rest of the chapters <3333 
> 
> Hope you guys have an amazing day and had an amazing week, dont forget to check out the list of upcoming fics in the series or the rest of already ongoing fics! 
> 
> Love you all!! <3333  
> http://ahominebaka.tumblr.com/


	8. The Irezumi

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “What are you doing?” Akaashi asked, glancing at Bokuto from the mirror.
> 
> Bokuto looked into his reflection and then back at Akaashi’s back, “I’m just curious.”
> 
> Akaashi turned around, making the dragon disappear from Bokuto’s sight, “Curious about what?”
> 
> Bokuto, who was lying down on Akaashi’s bed wearing nothing and only covered by the sheets, shook his head, “Your tattoos, I never really looked at them closely…”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So! I've been asked a lot lately to go more into detail about Akaashi's tattoos... So here you have them!!   
> I know a lot of you wanted them as a reference for art purposes, so if you want me to send you pictures that resemble what I thought out to be Akaashi's ink, hit me up on tumblr and I'll gladly do it! <33
> 
> I truly hope you enjoy this chapter because it was not only lots of fun to write it, but I also spent the past days doing a bunch of research! I had a lot of fun so thank you guys haha   
> Oh! And just in case it's not clear enough, this happens weeks after the arm incident!   
> The only song I used for this chapter was Memoirs of a Geisha Soundtrack - The Chairman's Waltz ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5sVqGYXBVG0 )
> 
> Have a wonderful weekend! <33  
> http://ahominebaka.tumblr.com/

The scariest Japanese dragon Bokuto had ever seen. His bold eyes squinted into a frown, his teeth sharply shown through the lips and whiskers, tainted in red as a form of blood. The scales throughout the body green and turquoise wherever the light hit, except for those underneath, those had a shade of red that accompanied the bloody muzzle. Like a serpent, he tangled around a sharp and twisted sword that went up and down the spine, zigzagging through the blade as if it were both, protecting it, and ready to use it against anyone that dared…

“What are you doing?” Akaashi asked, glancing at Bokuto from the mirror.

Bokuto looked into his reflection and then back at Akaashi’s back, “I’m just curious.”

Akaashi turned around, making the dragon disappear from Bokuto’s sight, “Curious about what?”

Bokuto, who was lying down on Akaashi’s bed wearing nothing and only covered by the sheets, shook his head, “Your tattoos, I never really looked at them closely…”

Akaashi glanced down at his body, “Well you’ve had plenty of chances to do that.” He chuckled as he grabbed his pack of cigarettes.

“I know…” Bokuto nodded, “You have a pretty scary dragon on your back…”

Akaashi rose an eyebrow and chuckled, “You think it’s scary?” He said as he clicked the lighter with his thumb with the cigarette between his lips.

Bokuto shrugged, “Well, isn’t it?”

Akaashi sighed and looked out the window, “In a scary world, when you live trapped by enemies who call themselves your family, traditions are often required to gain a higher and deeper respect. My tattoos used to be nothing but a callout to look threatening.”

“Used to be?” Bokuto asked as he studied Akaashi’s expression and features, his thin nose and lips, his deep and focused eyes examining the outside, his perfect messy black hair… And his beautiful tainted skin.

Akaashi inhaled the smoke from his cigarette and looked back at Bokuto, “In some families it used to be a mandatory act to become a yakuza. You would have to endure the long and painful hours that a tattoo meant.” He chuckled, “Now, of course, you only have to take a long written test that specifies the many ways to avoid getting in trouble during your criminal activities, but hey… Times change, traditions do so as well…” He sighed.

“Did you have to take the test?” Bokuto asked as he sat up and moved closer, leaning his back against the wall.

Akaashi shook his head, “I entered the old fashioned way, I already told you about the fight.” He chuckled again, the dimples on his cheeks forming the face of what used to be a childish nature, “Once the Oyabun saw us, he immediately became my sponsor for the Sakazuki, a ceremony where an older member of the gang becomes your older brother, someone willing to teach you the ropes and ways of the Yakuza. You go to a Shinto temple and sit across each other, and you share a cup of sake to close the deal.” He explained carelessly.

Bokuto tilted his head, “So you got a dragon tattoo to seem more threatening?”

Akaashi laughed loudly and shook his head, “No, no, it sure helped… But it’s not the tattoo what matters to the Yakuza, it’s the process of getting one what makes you seem more or less threatening.” He shrugged, “Tebori is a painful process, so the bigger the tattoo, the bigger the respect. And if it’s a body-suit, no one will take your endurance and strength for granted.”

Bokuto frowned, “Tebori is the traditional art, isn’t it? Where they do it by hand with a bamboo stick or a blade?”

Akaashi nodded, “It depends on the artists, my usual guy prefers a bamboo stick and needles. He is a very traditional man.”

Bokuto nodded as well, listening closely, “So all your tattoos were done through Tebori?”

“No, most of them were, but others were done with a machine… It’s much faster and less invasive.” Akaashi explained as the smoke covered his face, “The dragon on my back is accompanied by the tiger.” He pointed at his chest, "The red ink can sometimes be toxic, so you can go through long days with high fever after getting inked." 

Bokuto could see the red and yellow colors shining brightly through his skin. The shape of a tiger posing, roaring almost audibly to whoever laid eyes on Akaashi’s skin… Surrounded by green bamboo sticks, the black stripes across the fur of the animal, and the thick claws that seemed to grip onto Akaashi’s stomach only made him look even more threatening than the dragon itself. The black and white shadowed waves of a typical traditional Japanese tattoo only denoted the brightness of the colors even more.

“The dragon and the tiger go together?” Bokuto asked feeling unable to take his eyes off of them.

Akaashi nodded slowly, watching Bokuto with almost the same hypnotized eyes as him, “Yakuza often get these two, the dragon as a symbol of power and fortune or good luck, the tiger symbolizes the courage and to ward off evil spirits and bad fortune.” He chuckled, “They are threatening and we get them as both a spiritual and physical protection.”

Bokuto leaned forward, examining the ink even closer, “What about the rest?”

Akaashi sighed, “Well, the one in the broken arm you’ve already seen it. It mostly has wild animals and a river next to a path that flows up to my shoulder.” He tried to move his now almost healed arm, but the bandages didn’t let him move it too much, “Getting a tattoo for me is a way to close a door to the past, make peace with the bad events that my younger self had to go through… I got this one when I made peace with my old village and my old family.” He pointed at his other arm, “This one is cherry blossoms and chrysanthemum flowers. I added the waves much later.”

Unable to hold back, Bokuto reached out with his arms and began caressing his skin, his fingers softly tracing through the paths the wild waves of water formed through Akaashi’s forearm. The flowers pink and purple, each brighter than the other, so alive, and so full of joy and will to shine… “Why the flowers and the waves?” He asked in a soft whisper.

Akaashi moved closer, his eyes watching Bokuto’s fingers on his skin for a while, and then moving up to Bokuto’s lips and eyes, “The flowers mean a short life and peaceful rest. The cherry blossoms grow quickly and for a short period of time, the chrysanthemums are often placed on someone’s tombstone after they die… In case I didn’t have anyone to do so for me, I would have done it myself…” He whispered back, “And… And the waves mean tranquility regardless of strength.”

Bokuto looked up to Akaashi’s eyes for the first time, their faces so close to each other, their bodies almost touching as Akaashi leaned down from his chair and Bokuto leaned forward from the bed, “That’s a sad meaning…” Bokuto mumbled, his eyes staring back at Akaashi, the smoke from his cigarette floating between each other like a curtain that separated them as the cigarette itself remained untouched between Akaashi’s fingers, the thick dead ashes falling onto the desk and forming a small and thin mountain of what used to be poisonous leaves.

Akaashi nodded, “It’s sad, but important for people who have a marker on their backs and they know they can die any day.” He mumbled as his fingers dropped the cigarette on the ashtray without looking away from Bokuto’s eyes.

“Could you show me the rest?” Bokuto hummed, his fingers tangling with Akaashi’s, pulling him closer and onto his lap.

Akaashi obeyed; his eyes and lips were drawn to Bokuto’s essence like those of a man who just smelled the scent of roses on a flower field, like the bird who flies through the wind trying to find the perfect course… And suddenly the wings adapt perfectly with the wind and he is being carried forward exactly where he wanted to…

“There’s the daggers and numbers in my neck, as you know…” He mumbled, his breathing interrupted by the touch of Bokuto’s lips against his neck, his soft tongue running down each dagger and number.

“I know this one very well…” Bokuto whispered, his breathing caressing the already electrified skin of the man on top of him, “What else?”

Akaashi lifted his healed hand, “The words on my knuckles… They read ‘Lost Boys’ as in reference to the many young boys the Yakuza get involved with their affairs just because they lack a home…” He watched Bokuto hold his fingers and kiss them softly, one at a time. “The one on my right hand… It’s a quill with ink, as I’m sure you can guess the meaning…”

“Mhm…” Bokuto mumbled while nodding, his lips trailing up to the shape of the delicate quill on his soft skin, “…And the other?”

Akaashi gulped, trying to focus and not lose his mind with the soft and careful movements that Bokuto was doing. No one had ever been so delicate, so careful, so detailed with him ever before… “The other hand… It’s a phoenix… I got it not long ago when I finally decided to leave the yakuza.”

Bokuto looked up into Akaashi’s eyes; he saw the lust in them, the need for closeness and the questioning shadows behind his pupils. Knowing his other hand was still healing up, he decided to kiss the traces of the tiger on his chest instead, making Akaashi breath in deeply, trembling softly every once in a while.

“Then…” He tried to continue, but his fingers were running through Bokuto’s black and white hair far too desperately, as if they tried to get in touch with his body as soon as possible. He blinked a few times and looked up to the ceiling, “Then… The one on my right leg…”

His train of thought was interrupted by Bokuto’s thick arms, they lifted him up and carefully positioned him against the bed, his back lying on the mattress as he looked up to the man who seemed far too busy kissing the ink engraved on his skin to pay attention to what he was really saying.

“What about the right leg?” Bokuto asked, his tone melted through the kisses as he moved his head down to Akaashi’s stomach, reaching his hip with his lips. His fingers moved up the gluteus towards the knee.

“The right leg, it’s the Goddess of Mercy…” He moaned softly at the touch of Bokuto’s tongue running down his thigh, “She’s peace, compassion, and mercifulness… Something one hopes to obtain after committing a crime… And something I decided to give as well.” His fingers gripped slowly to the sheets beneath him, “The lotus is purity… And the waters below her are the struggles…” He closed his eyes, “The struggles one must always come ahead from…”

“What about the other leg?” Bokuto asked as he gently buried his teeth on Akaashi’s right thigh, his fingers slowly pulling his underwear down to take them off.

Akaashi moved in accordance to Bokuto’s movements, like a man willing to let himself be done whatever Bokuto wished for… He had never been so submissive or looked so hypnotized by Bokuto’s actions, “The other leg…” He said unaware of how much he was sharing about himself, was he finally opening up to Bokuto? Or was he simply far too distracted and turned on? “The other leg is Oniwakamura… Samurai Benkei as a child killing a giant Koi… He is considered the epitome of loyalty and honor by the yakuza… And the Koi is not only bigger and stronger than him, but if it reaches the top of the river, it becomes a dragon...”

“Hmmm…” Bokuto mumbled while moving up once more to kiss Akaashi on the lips, “But I thought the Yakuza never got visible tattoos…” He asked while staring down at him, his fingers moving between Akaashi’s legs and one of them slowly entering him.

Akaashi arched his back in a mixture of surprise and pleasure, one hand digging into Bokuto’s forearm skin while the other covered his mouth to stop the moan from escaping though his lips, “It’s just another reason why I didn’t fit in…” He said with his voice muffled through his hand, “They never liked my visible tattoos… But I got them all for myself.” He closed his eyes as Bokuto moved his finger in an out, slowly and almost as gently as any other movement he had done so far.

“What about me?” Bokuto purred into his ear before moving back up to look at his expression.

Akaashi opened his eyes in confusion but closed them once more as Bokuto inserted one more finger, sending shivers down Akaashi’s spine and electrifying his skin, giving a more vivid touch to every tattoo, “What… What about you?” He asked holding back the moans.

Bokuto smirked, “Did you also get me all for yourself?” He asked with a deep rusty voice that only made Akaashi tremble beneath him, his nails burying deeper and deeper into his arm.

“I… I don’t know…” He said with difficulty, unable to focus and avoiding Bokuto’s glance.

Bokuto’s smirk turned wider as he moved down to Akaashi’s hip, without using his other hand, he leaned closer to Akaashi’s hard length and began to slowly run his tongue up and down his skin, circling the tip every once in a while.

Akaashi’s hips shook in excitement as his hands grabbed themselves to the sheet, his tattoos moving like soft sea wives as they hit the sandy shores, and his skin shone brightly with the sweat, “Bokuto…” He mumbled before biting his lower lip to repress the sounds he was dying to make.

Bokuto didn’t reply, instead, he grabbed Akaashi’s length and buried it between his lips, slowly moving downwards and then back up, his tongue tensed as it slowly caressed it, and his cheeks pressed against it as he sucked with both, delicacy and a fervent passion.

The more he moved his mouth, the deeper his fingers went and the more Akaashi’s body trembled at his touch. “Boku-…” He tried to speak again, but his voice was cut out as he pushed his head back, his hardness twitching between Bokuto’s lips.

Bokuto could feel Akaashi's breathing accelerating, he could taste the excitement in his mouth and sense the way his fingers gripped tightly to the sheets. The more he moved, the more Akaashi’s hips moved as well, desperately trying to get back into Bokuto’s mouth, as if the relief of his lips was so great it sent shockwaves through his body, hard to contain and ignore, hard to even live without them.

Adding a third and final finger inside Akaashi, and with his other hand massaging his length every time his lips moved out, leaving a trail of saliva and pre-cum behind, Bokuto knew it wouldn’t take long for Akaashi to find the relief, to reach the ecstasies. And this was only confirmed once Akaashi moved his hand up to Bokuto’s hair, his fingers tangling with his white and black locks as he pulled them tightly, feeling the climax approaching his body.

Arching his back for one last time, his body shook and his repressed moans exited his lungs all at once, his fingers letting go of Bokuto’s hair, and his limbs relaxing with the sensation of pure pleasure.

Bokuto slowly looked up, wiping his chin and lips with his wrist. He carefully climbed up to Akaashi’s torso, and remained above him, looking down at him just like he had done at the very beginning, “I hope you will tell me about your tattoos sometime again…” He said with a grin.

Akaashi glared up at him and sighed before playfully and gently slapping him on the cheek, “You’re so annoying…”

Bokuto laughed and lied next to him, “But you love me.”

Akaashi chuckled sarcastically, “I do not.” He said while watching Bokuto from the corner of his eye.

“Not yet at least.” He grinned.

Akaashi groaned, “If my other arm were healed I would slap you for real.”

Bokuto moved forward and slowly kissed his chest, “Well the doctor said to wait 7 weeks, it’s been 6 and a half, so I’m sure in a few days you’ll be good. Are you feeling better?”

Akaashi hesitated but then nodded slowly, “Yes, but I didn’t need you to come by every day, you know?”

Bokuto looked up to him, “I know, but you could have told me to go away if I bothered you.” He chuckled, “I’ve already told you I’ll do whatever you ask of me.”

Akaashi sighed but didn’t have enough time to reply, someone had walked into the apartment.

“Akaaaaashiiii!!!” Hinata’s voice resounded through the living room, “Akaashi!”

“Wait, Hina-” Akaashi moved quickly, but not fast enough. Suddenly Hinata burst through the door, his wide smile turning into a face of horror as he realized Akaashi was naked, and his voice shaped into a high pitch scream before he closed the door once more.

Akaashi sighed in annoyance and put on his underwear and pants before handing Bokuto his own to get dressed. Once both of them were decent enough, they walked into the living-room, only to find Hinata covering his eyes and sitting on the couch.

“I’m sorry… I didn’t know Boku-chan was here…” He mumbled without looking at them.

“Quit calling him Boku-chan.” Akaashi mumbled as he walked towards the kitchen, “What did you want anyways?”

Quickly, Hinata uncovered his eyes and turned around in excitement, his knees on the couch and his hands on the back pillows, “Oh yes! Well… Apparently the agency wants me to live with this idiot…”

Akaashi came back with two glasses of water and he handed one to Bokuto, “The agency wants you to live with an idiot?” He rose an eyebrow and turned to Bokuto, “I guess I’m the only one living with an idiot out of free choice nowadays…” he said before taking a sip from his glass.

Bokuto chuckled as he drank from his glass as well.

Hinata looked at them both and then sighed, “It’s just this new band mate they assigned to us… A new guitar player, he’s so annoying…”

Akaashi listened intently and nodded, “And you have to live with him?”

Hinata pouted and nodded, “The agency wants us to get along, so they are making us live together in this apartment they own…”

Akaashi titled his head, “So you’re telling me you’re moving out?”

“…Yeah…” Hinata mumbled as he looked down, “I’m sorry Akaashi… But I can keep paying the rent! I don’t have to pay for rent in the new place and I don’t mind helping you out here.”

Akaashi quickly shook his head, “Forget about it, I’ll be fine.” He tried to smile.

Hinata looked up to him and frowned, “Are you sure…?”

“Do I look like I don’t know what I’m talking about?” Akaashi asked with a bored tone.

Hinata hesitated but then sighed, “Okay… Well… I’ll go pack my things; they want me to be there tonight.” He stood up and then turned to Akaashi, “I mean it, though, if you want me to help out I really don’t have a problem with paying the rent here.”

Akaashi shook his head, “I told you I’ll be fine, don’t be annoying, so go pack your things.” He said before drinking his water.

Hinata smiled softly while nodding before walking into his room. Once Akaashi and Bokuto were alone in the living room, Bokuto turned to him, “Are you sure about this?”

Akaashi looked at him with confusion, “What do you mean?”

Bokuto shrugged, “you know, the whole paying for this place on your own?”

Akaashi remained silent for a while and then turned around to walk into his room, “He’s getting out of here, and he’s stepping up in life. I won’t stop him from doing something like that.”

Bokuto followed him, “I’m not saying stopping him but-”

“But first, I ask him for help with the rent, then for something else… I don’t need charity, and I sure as hell won’t betray him by ruining the chance he has been hoping for.” Akaashi said while interrupting him.

Bokuto sighed and nodded, “Fine, but you know if you need a place to stay or help with the rent…”

Akaashi shook his head, “I said I’ll manage.” He walked back into the room and stood by the window, lighting up a new cigarette and looking outside the streets, thinking in silence.

Bokuto watched him, re-examining the ink of his body, the dragon, the samurai, the goddess, the flowers, the river… Everything made sense, everything was Akaashi’s personality. He had grown in such a rough environment, not only with the Yakuza but with a family that wasn’t accepting and took it upon them to kick him out, the life on the streets… And then being taken in by people who you have to constantly prove yourself, show your strength and tenacity. The hours of pain he endured, the long process of finding himself not only through his actions but also through enough thinking, even the choice itself to leave his adoptive family behind… Akaashi didn’t need anyone. He could survive through life and the world like a dragon tangled around a sword or like a tiger roaring ferociously between forests of bamboo trees. He could defend himself and show his teeth. He didn’t need any charity or pity from anyone else, not even through the years of struggling did he pity himself once or thought he wasn’t worth fighting for.

Akaashi’s tattoos weren’t only a way to protect himself; they were a reflection of his soul. Thought out analysis of himself written down on his skin, showing the world what he was and what he wanted to be. They were the embodiment of every word he had spoken, every thought that had run through his brain. From the moment he knew what the world was like, to this very day, Akaashi knew what he meant to the world and he never thought twice about it. He was courage, the bravery, and strength, the loyalty and honor, the purity and compassion, the tranquility and serenity, the delicacy and life, the self-respect and independence, the past, present, and future of his whole being.

Bokuto sighed as he watched him, realizing that... Akaashi was, all in all, _perfect._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter! Don't forget to let me know what you loved, hated, or think about Akaashi's tattoos! I have to say with all this research and all the amazing art I found on the web I am dying to get inked again and I might steal some of Akaashi's ideas... hahaha who knows! I have enough projects of my own and even though I wish to get some through Tebori as well, I will have to leave those for last until I can make my way to Japan! 
> 
> So yeah, don't forget to check out the rest of fics in this series or the list of upcoming ones in the list I have on my tumblr! I hope you guys enjoyed it and that you have a wonderful weekend! 
> 
> http://ahominebaka.tumblr.com/


	9. The Fairy Tale Wish

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Do you celebrate Christmas?” Bokuto blurted out, narrowing his eyes and immediately regretting asking the question. He feared getting a negative answer, he feared spending one more Christmas sitting in his living room by himself and watching TV as he glanced at the beautiful streets through his window and saw the people enjoying such beautiful holiday.
> 
> Akaashi remained silent for a while and then answered, “I do not, why?”
> 
> Bokuto’s heart died a little as he avoided sighing out loud. He wanted an affirmative answer, what a better alternative for a failed work-related-party than to spend the day with someone he loved so much? But of course, he already expected Akaashi to say he didn’t celebrate the occasion, “No reason.” He said, repeating the same he had told Iwaizumi.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well well well!!! This could probably be taken as a peace offering for all the pain caused with the previous fics and chapters hahaha but it can also be taken as a peace offering for all the pain I'll cause with this fic? Who knows... 
> 
> Either way I hope you guys enjoy this chapter, the song I used for this was "Finding Neverland - Impossible Opening". I freaking love this soundtrack and I freaking love this movie because it turns me into a sobbing mess... 
> 
> Anyways, it's like 6:30 am, I havent slept and I'm kinda spacing out as I write this so... Enjoy it!~   
> http://ahominebaka.tumblr.com/

Bokuto liked to express himself in mysterious ways. He loved analogies, he loved the perfection of each sentence that left you wondering and making up conclusions on your own. This way, he did not only avoid being blamed for a possible and terrible outcome, but he also ended up looking like one of those wise men filled of riddles from the fairy tales one reads as a kid.

And that’s what Bokuto was. He was a fairy tale. He was the sparkle of every wish, the beginning of every dream with a hopeful thinking for a fair and happy ending. He was the outcome of everything beautiful, the imagination of every child at night when they dream to become those wonderful knight or princesses that fight dragons and sip on tasty wine at banquettes when they celebrate the happiness and joy of their kingdom.

He was the innocent prayer for a miracle, the need for a Hogwarts letter or a brave fight against some terrifying villain that would enchant the minds of those alike and therefore curse the lands into a perishing tragedy.

For someone with this type of attitude, there was nothing better than… Christmas.

The snowmen, the Santa Claus hats and costumes, the scent of the warm food coming from every restaurant, the decoration in the shopping districts, the tender and thought out presents everyone ran around buying or selling for the special occasion. Bokuto loved every bit of it. He was the epitome of Christmas spirit, he was the Christmas carol that showed up at your door, the lightened up tree in your living room waiting for the colorful presents, the warm and delicious cookies shaped into little men with tiny hats… He loved every bit of if, he never had enough, and if it was up to him… It would be Christmas every time of the year.

Except he never had the chance to celebrate it himself.

This year, Bokuto found himself sitting in his old adorable classroom, his heart filled with excitement and anticipation while his mind pondered on the possibility to spend a different type of holiday. He had always hoped for someone to spend the special date with, but as someone who wasted many years in a foster home… It became rather unlikely to find the chance to exchange carefully picked presents, or to set up a Christmas tree, or to even hear the jolly sound of a Christmas carol.

_Such a small wish… And yet it seemed so impossible…_

He looked around, the outside darkening as the day went by. The walls of the room painted with odd scribbles that his students had gone on and drawn by themselves. Bokuto knew he was supposed to tell them to stop and teach them how wrong it was to do something like that… But he just couldn’t. Not because he wasn’t aware of how important discipline was, on the contrary. He understood perfectly the great importance of a high education and correct manners. But whenever someone asked him ‘why don’t you tell them to stop?’ all he could bring himself to reply was; ‘well let me ask you something… Don’t you ever stop and realize how liberating and exciting it would be to grab a crayon or a marker… And draw oddities on the walls?’

_Let the tiny humans enjoy the purity and decency of a free soul, the soft swim of a Koi through the fresh winter waters. Let them be free… While they can._

A soft knock brought him back to reality. Iwaizumi was standing at the door; his body leaned forward as he held himself onto the frame of the door, “Are you not going home?”

Bokuto looked up to him, slowly realizing he had had a goofy smile on his face for who knew how long. He nodded, “Yeah, I’m just waiting until my shift is over.”

Iwaizumi frowned, “Since when do we work with a shift system?”

Bokuto chuckled, “Well, since Kiyoko punished me?”

His friend stared at him and then laughed, shaking his head, “Oh my god, she is so cruel…”

Bokuto hesitated, watching his friend’s reaction and leaning forward, “Why is she cruel?”

“Well…” Iwaizumi stepped forward, “Your punishment was over like a week ago.”

Bokuto stood up, slamming his hands on the table dramatically, “WHAT?!”

Iwaizumi could only laugh as loudly as he had ever done, the sole idea of his friend and coworker coming in at impossible hours and leaving even later than his own boss was the funniest thing he could think of, only because this was happening to Bokuto.

“I can’t believe this! That menacing woman! She’s the devil!” He yelled trying to repress his own laughter, but unable to do so at the sight of his friend laughing almost on the floor.

Iwaizumi dried his tears with his index finger, his soft chuckles still resounding in the room, “Oh man, she got you… Well, the good thing is you will go back to getting paid the same as always?”

Bokuto huffed and flopped down on his chair, “I guess so… I should get a raise for all the extra time I’ve been doing, though!”

Iwaizumi chuckled once more, “Well, go home now. We are closing already.” He walked back towards the door.

“Wait, Iwaizumi…” Bokuto stopped him, his heart nervously beating in his chest as he gulped and try to think of a way to phrase his question.

His friend stopped immediately and turned to him with a questioning glance, “Yes?”

Bokuto looked down and then around the room, his fingers caressing the cracked wood of his desk, “Well… Are you… Are you doing anything for Christmas?” He knew the answer would be no. Iwaizumi never celebrated Christmas. He thought of it as something you normally do with a couple, something he had refused to have in god knows how long.

Iwaizumi remained silent for a while and then nodded, “Yeah… Oikawa asked me to celebrate it with him…” He looked down as well, his cheeks pink in embarrassment and his lips formed into a shy and tender smile.

Bokuto’s eyes widened, “Oh! Oh my goodness! That’s wonderful!” Even though he was planning on asking him to have a Christmas party with the rest of the academy, he couldn’t help but feel the happiness in his heart at the idea of his friend finally having the opportunity to share such a day with the man he liked.

Iwaizumi nodded slowly and then tilted his head, “Why do you ask, though?”

“No reason.” Bokuto lied, shaking his head with a smile, “Just wanted to pry on your personal life and see if that cute actor of yours had made a move or not.” He giggled.

Iwaizumi rolled his eyes, “Well come on, let’s go. I’m sure you’re dying to see that barista of yours.”

Bokuto quickly rose to his feet and grabbed his things, managing as best as he could to put on his coat while he juggled with his heavy bag.

They both exited the academy, Iwaizumi closing after him and taking a deep breath as he looked at his surroundings, “I guess Tokyo is pretty ready for Christmas.”

Bokuto giggled excitedly and nodded, “Well, it is tomorrow.” He chuckled, “I’ll see you on Monday?”

Iwaizumi nodded and slowly waved him goodbye, “Have a nice weekend, Bokuto.”

Almost immediately and after tightening up his coat around his body, he began to walk home, his steps fast for both the cold and the need to reach his destination. His frozen breath forming a fog outside his lips, bringing back the old fantasy he would have as a kid when he pretended it was smoke… The smell of cigarettes…

He reached into his pocket and grabbed his phone, dialing Akaashi’s number, one he had only obtained after a prolonged time of insistence.

“Hello, lover boy,” Akaashi answered after a while.

Bokuto smiled at the thought of being called something like that, “Hey, where are you?”

“Just going home, my shift just finished. What about you?” Akaashi replied nonchalantly.

Bokuto sighed, watching his surroundings change as he moved from street to street, “Well, I’m going home too…” He cleared his throat, “I wanted to ask you something.”

Akaashi chuckled, “O-okay…” He replied with a hint of nervousness.

“Do you celebrate Christmas?” Bokuto blurted out, narrowing his eyes and immediately regretting asking the question. He feared getting a negative answer, he feared spending one more Christmas sitting in his living room by himself and watching TV as he glanced at the beautiful streets through his window and saw the people enjoying such beautiful holiday.

Akaashi remained silent for a while and then answered, “I do not, why?”

Bokuto’s heart died a little as he avoided sighing out loud. He wanted an affirmative answer, what a better alternative for a failed work-related-party than to spend the day with someone he loved so much? But of course he already expected Akaashi to say he didn’t celebrate the occasion, “No reason.” He said, repeating the same he had told Iwaizumi.

Akaashi remained silent for a bit, and then hesitated, “Where are you?”

Bokuto looked around, “Just on my way home, about to pass your cafeteria.”

“Wait there.” Akaashi quickly replied before hanging up.

Bokuto immediately obeyed, his steps freezing in place as he glanced around trying to get an idea of why Akaashi would ask something like that.

The soft melody of a violin brought him into a dreamy state. A street musician stood by a corner, his case opened right in front of him and thirsty for coins. His fingers caressed the neck as his other hand moved the bow across the instrument, emitting the soft and romantic melody that would enchant anyone with a soft heart.

Just as he found himself distracted enough, a cold touch caressed his fingers. He turned around and found Akaashi standing right next to him, trying to hold his hand as the soft wind brushed his soft black hair across his forehead and eyes.

Bokuto looked into his eyes, not reacting for a few seconds, enchanted now by both the music and the sight of such beautiful man, “Akaashi?”

The black haired man smiled softly as he looked into his eyes, “You sounded sad over the phone…”

Bokuto blinked a few times, his heart melting in his chest and his eyes slowly filling up with tears, “I’m… I’m not sad.”

Akaashi chuckled and shook his head, “Of course not. You just want to celebrate Christmas, right?”

Bokuto nodded slowly, his mind trying to figure out how Akaashi realized what his wish had been all those years. He sighed and looked down, quickly wiping away the gathered tears with the wrist of his coat, “But it’s okay, I’ll find something to do during the day.”

Akaashi giggled and pulled him forward, “Well, I don’t see why we can’t celebrate it.”

Bokuto hesitated, his eyes shifting through the streets and towards Akaashi as he guided him to his apartment, “But… But you said you don’t-”

Akaashi shrugged, “I don’t mind giving it a try. I guess I’m probably nowhere near as excited as you are, but I feel a slight curiosity.” He said trying to sound indifferent.

Bokuto held his hand carefully and smiled, “Thank you…”

They both continued to walk in silence, their path surrounded by the many people doing a last minute shopping of the presents. The air was cold, but their hands remained warm by the touch of each other.

Soon enough they arrived at Bokuto’s front door, and only then he realized Akaashi had never been before at his place. He turned to him surprised as he opened the front gate of his building, “You’ve never been to my place!” He said, echoing his own thoughts.

Akaashi looked down as he stepped into the building behind him and nodded, “Yeah, you always come to mine.”

They climbed in the elevator and Bokuto turned to him with a wide smile, “Are you excited??”

Akaashi shrugged and tilted his head, “No…” But his cheeks were pink and his eyes averted Bokuto’s. He had spent enough time with him to know that if he wasn’t excited… He at least felt curious to know what Bokuto’s place was like.

And well… Bokuto’s apartment wasn’t different from his personality. As soon as he opened the white door from his apartment, they stepped into a warm and wooden living room. The furniture carefully picked and neatly cleaned. The black couch surrounded the TV and the huge video game and movie set up. The large windows across from them illuminated the entire apartment, showing the small details of the many kinds of decorations, most of them antiques from the same shop where he had bought the typewriter.

Akaashi stepped forward, examining the clean kitchen bar that spread across one side of the living room, separating the area from the actual and very white kitchen. He had all kinds of utensils hanging around, a shelf filled with different types of cookbooks and the recipes he liked the most had a sticker showing up from above the pages. 

Bokuto followed him, closing the door after them and leaving his coat on the side of the couch, watching Akaashi walk around and glance at every piece of furniture or decoration in every room. He went towards the guest’s bedroom and looked around, then to the guest’s bathroom, then to the main bedroom, and finally Bokuto’s bathroom. He looked like a little kid walking around the castle, amazed by how everything was set up and placed in front of him.

Finally, after he was done inspecting the apartment, he turned to him, “Wow… I… I never expected you to live in a place like this?”

Bokuto hesitated, “Is that a good thing?”

Akaashi walked towards the living room windows and glanced outside, seeing the very different views from what his own apartment had. Bokuto’s apartment saw the sweet river that crossed the city, the trees and the people, the shiny sky that now went dark for the approaching night, “It is… Hell, I could live here myself.” He giggled distractedly.

Bokuto chuckled, “Well I already offered you that.”

Akaashi turned to him quickly and frowned, “I didn’t mean it like that. I meant… I could live here myself. Without you.” He nervously added.

Just as Bokuto was about to reply, his phone buzzed in his pocket. He reached down for it and grabbed it, picking up the call, “Hello?”

“Uhm, Bokuto?” A woman replied on the other side.

Bokuto rose his index finger to ask Akaashi to give him a moment, “Yeah, it’s me.”

The woman sighed in relief, “Oh thank god! I thought I had lost your phone number!” She giggled, “I’m Natsu’s mother.”

“Oh!” Bokuto smiled, “Is she alright?”

“Yeah yeah,” the woman quickly added, “Listen, I know you’re always doing this for us and we should definitely pay you extra… But would you mind babysitting her this weekend? We have a business trip and our schedule will be far too busy to take her with us.”

Bokuto hesitated, he wanted to remind them it was Christmas and they should cancel all their plans and spend them with their own tiny human… But he knew every family was different and not everyone celebrated the holiday, “Yes, of course! You know you can always count on me.” He chuckled, “Should I go pick her up?”

“Oh thank god…” Natsu’s mother replied in relief, “Yes, I won’t leave until you get here, so no worries, no rush.”

Bokuto chuckled, “No problem, I’m on my way then.”

“Thank you so much, darling!” The woman said eagerly on the other side before hanging up.

Bokuto sighed and looked up to Akaashi who was looking back at him.

“You have to go pick up someone?” He asked awkwardly.

Bokuto nodded, “Yeah, Natsu. Hinata’s little sister. Sometimes I babysit for her parents while they go away on business trips. They asked me to take care of her this weekend.”

“Oh…” Akaashi said before remaining silent for a while, “I guess I should go then.”

Bokuto looked up at him in shock, “What?! No! No, no! please stay…” He walked closer, his fingers slowly reaching out for Akaashi’s, “Please… I really want to spend Christmas with you…”

Akaashi hesitated, looking away for a while and thinking through very carefully. Finally he sighed and nodded, “Fine, but only because it’s Christmas…”

Bokuto grinned widely for a second, but then his eyes turned into pure horror, “Oh my god… Tomorrow is Christmas! I can’t bring Natsu in here without any decorations hanging around!”

Akaashi stared at him, “I don’t think she’ll notice?”

Bokuto gasped, “Well, of course, she will! This is one of her first Christmas! She must see a room full of light and warmth and love and I don’t have any of that!”

Akaashi chuckled and looked around, “You do have all that without any Christmas stuff hanging around…”

Bokuto quickly shook his head, “I need to go get the decorations!”

“Where… Where are they?” Akaashi asked, frowning with confusion.

Bokuto looked down at him, his eyes still filled with shock and tension, “They are in a box, under the guest’s bed! I’ve never had the chance to use them so I have to take it all out and set it all up for her!”

Akaashi sighed and shook his head, “I think you need to prioritize. Go pick her up, and then we’ll set up the stuff with her. She’ll have fun.”

Bokuto hesitated, he wanted to refuse, he wanted to quickly rush to the guest’s room and grab the box to hang everything as fast as it was humanly possible… But he knew Natsu’s mother was waiting and he had to go pick her up right then. He looked down with sadness and then nodded, “Yeah… I guess you’re right…” He stepped back, “I’ll be right back, then… Okay? Just make yourself at home.”

Akaashi nodded with a smile, “Don’t worry about me, Bokuto. Just go get her.”

Bokuto nodded slowly and grabbed his coat once more, exiting through the door.

 

\------

 

“So... I will be with Boku-chan this weekend?” Natsu asked without looking up to him, her tiny hand holding Bokuto’s as they both went up the floors in Bokuto’s elevator.

He looked down at her and nodded slowly, “Yes, I will take care of you while mom and dad are away.” He said, feeling the heavy bag of Natsu’s thing weighing his other hand down.

She nodded, thinking, “And Boku-chan has a friend too?”

Bokuto smiled and nodded, “Yes, his name is Akaashi. He’s very shy, so be nice to him.”

Natsu turned to him with a frown, “I will be! I will be his friend too, Boku-chan!”

He giggled and nodded, stepping out of the elevator with her. He reached out for his keys and slowly opened the front door to his apartment. As they both walked in and looked around, Bokuto could feel his soul exiting his body and his mind swimming through a gigantic tornado of emotions.

The living room… The Kitchen… Every corner of the entrance was filled with green and red and many, many lights. All the tender decorations he had bought for absolutely no reason were placed in the room, showing the Christmas spirit he had hoped to achieve throughout all those years.

Before he could call out his name to find him, he saw Akaashi’s silhouette carefully placing the lights around the Christmas tree, his eyes focused on his task barely even realizing they were standing at the door, and then Natsu had the exact same reaction as Bokuto.

Eagerly, and without being able to hold back, they both began to scream in excitement, startling Akaashi in the process. They ran forward and glanced at every bow and figurine, their eyes excitedly searching around just as Akaashi had done previously as he looked through every room.

“Boku-chaaaan!!!” Natsu yelled eagerly, her tiny legs running around in circles.

Bokuto wanted to continue screaming, but all he could do was stare back at Akaashi, trying to hold back the tears of both excitement and the tender love he felt in his heart, “You… You did this?” He asked in a silly manner.

Akaashi chuckled and turned back to the tree, finishing setting up the lights, “Well, I don’t really see anyone else here setting things up.”

Bokuto stepped forward and put his arms around him, hugging him tightly from behind and almost trapping him with his thick muscles, his cheek against Akaashi’s back and his eyes looking down with probably the largest amount of happiness he had ever felt in his life, “Thank you… Thank you, Akaashi… I love you.”

Akaashi tensed up, “You’re welcome… It was nothing.” He turned around to them once more and sighed, “But I have bad news…”

Bokuto looked up to him with a slight hint of panic, “Please don’t tell me you’re leaving…”

Akaashi chuckled, “No, but there’s not enough food in the fridge… So I had to choose between setting things up and going grocery shopping… And I’m sure you can figure out which one I picked.”

Bokuto nodded quickly, “I’ll go buy food then! You’ll have to keep an eye on her while I’m gone, though.” He said pointing at Natsu who continued to run around almost stumbling with everything on her path.

Akaashi hesitated, watching her and sighing, “I… I will have to find a way to keep her busy, I guess…” He mumbled.

Bokuto chuckled, “Yeah, she likes to paint or draw a lot if that helps…” He glanced down at Akaashi’s clothes realizing he was wearing the thick sweater he wore for work and his gloves “Are… Are you cold?”

“What?” He asked as he looked down at his own clothes, “I… I am.” He said, obviously lying.

Bokuto watched him and then smiled, “You’re lying, aren’t you?”

Akaashi remained silent and then shrugged, “I don’t know, I just…”

He leaned forward and carefully kissed him on the cheek, “You’re beautiful, Akaashi… Your tattoos… She will love them, believe me.” He said in a whisper to him before caressing his cheeks, “They are marvelous, just like you.” He chuckled, “Besides, if there’s a soul who won’t judge you, that’s Natsu.”

Akaashi hesitated and tilted his head, “I’ll… I’ll think about it, okay?” He replied without looking up, his fingers caressing each other as they tried to feel the white soft fabric of the gloves that enveloped them.

Bokuto nodded, “Whatever makes you feel more comfortable.” He kissed him once more, “I will be right back, okay? If you need anything just give me a call.” He said as he walked back to the door, patting Natsu’s head on the way, “Behave, tiny one. I don’t want to get mad because you made my friend uncomfortable.” He turned to her and winked, “Remember what he is…”

She turned to him and nodded eagerly, “SHY! I will make Boku-chan’s shy friend my friend!” She yelled and ran towards Akaashi, bluntly holding his hand and waving goodbye to Bokuto.

Bokuto waved back, giggling as he saw Akaashi’s startled and red face look down at the tiny human that had so eagerly rushed to him.

 

\-----

 

Bokuto’s hands carried the heavy bags filled with groceries. Yes, maybe he had overdone it, yes maybe he had bought far too much to last him a month… But at least he was back on the normal payroll and he had a great thing to celebrate! He was finally getting the Christmas he had dreamed for so long!

For the third time in the day, he climbed on the elevator and went up the floors, his heart beating with excitement and his lips forming an irreversible grin that he just could not erase from his face. He could barely calm down at the sole idea of spending that day with his two favorite people in the world.

As he arrived at his floor and reached his front door, all he could hear was… Silence?

He frowned and searched for the keys in his pocket once more, his mind trying to figure out whether Akaashi and Natsu were still home, maybe they had driven each other insane and a tragic murder took place, maybe Natsu ran away and Akaashi went after her, maybe they both fell asleep…

He opened the door and stepped inside, his eyes quickly scanning through the living room, trying to find them.

He heard the soft mumble of a Christmas Carol being formed with the melody of Natsu's voice… Accompanied by the even more beautiful tone of Akaashi’s mumbles. Following the sound, he glanced down at the low living room table where he found Akaashi. 

He had decided to take off the gloves and sweater, wearing only his short sleeved shirt and showing his tattoos. He was sitting on his knees, and his eyes were looking down at a white sheet of paper filled with scribbles he had been writing.

“Hey…” Bokuto smiled to him.

Akaashi looked up to him, ceasing to mumble the song, “Oh, hey… I hope you don’t mind I borrowed some paper and pencil to get her to draw…”

Bokuto shook his head and closed the door after him, “No worries. Where is she?” He asked with a fearful tone, part of him wondering what mischievous thing she could be up to, and the other part of him wondering if maybe she had been scared of Akaashi’s tattoos and ran away into another room?

Akaashi tilted his head, “Well… She… She saw my tattoos…”

Bokuto’s face went pale as he tried to imagine the horrible scenario that probably hurt Akaashi more than anyone could imagine. Had she run away crying? Yelling? What on earth had happened? And why would Natsu do something like that?

But then Akaashi giggled, “I guess she found them more interesting than the paper?”

Filled with confusion, Bokuto stepped forward, approaching him and taking a closer look. He then realized behind Akaashi, Natsu had been sitting all along, the marker she was supposed to use on the paper was placed between her fingers, and her eyes concentrated as she traced the purple ink over… Akaashi’s tattoos.

Bokuto watched the scenario, he observed the way Akaashi was sitting at the table writing on a paper and mumbling a soft melody, accompanied by Natsu who was sitting behind him drawing over his tattoos…

He would have dropped to his knees and sobbed if it wasn’t because he didn’t want to scare either of them and break such beautiful moment. He didn’t even know what to say or do; all he could do was watch them, the way their gentle interaction continued even though they were being stared at. The way Natsu didn’t even notice Bokuto was back because she was so engulfed on tracing over the perfectly formed tattoos, and the way Akaashi seemed so at peace he had been bold enough to go back to his writing and mumbling the song with her.

“I’ll… I’ll go make dinner.” He said almost out of breath, his cheeks red by the innocence and the beauty of the moment.

Akaashi nodded distractedly as he continued to write down, giggling every once in a while when Natsu tickled him with the marker.

Bokuto walked towards the kitchen and began to prepare the dinner, his mind trying to focus on the recipe and avoiding going back to how happy he was and how he knew he would remember this precious moment for the rest of his life. If he compared it to a fairy tale… He would be unfair to how special this felt.

Once dinner was ready, he slowly set up the table and served the food, “Well, I’m afraid I have to tell you two it’s time for dinner.” He grinned.

Natsu quickly looked up, “Noooo!!! I want to draw!”

Akaashi chuckled, “I promise you can continue later, but aren’t you hungry?” He asked her, looking less shy than he had previously done.

Natsu hesitated, pouting in the process, but then she nodded, “Let’s have dinner then! Let’s watch a movie!”

Bokuto laughed, his body moving as Natsu jumped on the couch next to him, “What do you want to watch?”

“A Christmas movie!” She said with an eager smile and looking back into Bokuto’s eyes that looked almost as if they had been filled with glitter for how excited he felt.

Akaashi stood up as well and glanced back at the TV, “Do you have any?”

Bokuto turned to him almost offended, “Of course I do!” He chuckled, “I keep the movies on the drawer bellow the TV.” He told him as he quickly rushed to Natsu who was trying to drink from her glass but was about to pour the water all over the place.

Akaashi finished setting up the movie before sitting on the couch to Bokuto’s other side, his eyes trying to quiet down the excitement, but as he looked at Bokuto, all that he could perceive was almost as much wishful need to experience the holidays like they had never done before.

They watched Home Alone, Polar Express, A Christmas Carol, and finally, Miracle on 34th Street. Most of them had been Natsu’s choices; others had been picked in unison after many funny arguments of which movie to eliminate from the broad selection.

By the time they reached the ending credits of the last movie, it was passed midnight and the apartment was silent except for the soft melody of the soundtrack. Bokuto looked down at Natsu who was lying down on the couch, her head resting against Bokuto’s lap and her eyes shut tight as she peacefully slept.

Carefully and trying not to wake her, Bokuto lifted her in his arms and carried her to the guest room where she always stayed and by now had more of her toys than anything else. Slowly and gently he put her into her pajamas and then tucked her into bed. He kissed her forehead and walked out to the living room, leaving the door ajar to make her feel more at ease if she woke up.

He walked back to the couch and gently caressed Akaashi’s hair, crouching to his side and trying to wake him up. Slowly he opened his eyes and looked up to him, “Oh… Sorry… I fell asleep with the last movie…”

Bokuto chuckled and nodded, “I know…”

Akaashi glanced down at his watch, “I should go home…”

“Nonsense,” Bokuto smiled, “You know you want to stay over, so just shut up and let me take you to bed.”

Akaashi hesitated, his eyes looking around as he sleepily thought about it, but then without saying a word, he stood up and grabbed Bokuto’s hand, slowly taking him into the main bedroom.

As they both lied in bed, slowly kissing and caressing each other while they got rid of their clothes, Bokuto could barely think about the way they were about to make love, all he could think about was the fairy tale he was living. His dream, all he had ever wanted… Had become true. He finally had had the chance to spend Christmas with someone; he had listened to the Christmas carols that his two favorite people had been singing while he cooked a warm and loving dinner. He had finally watched the cheesy and sweet movies he had wanted to share with people…

_Such a small wish… And yet it seemed so impossible… No, it wasn’t impossible… It wasn’t even only real… It was much better than he had ever imagined._

“Merry Christmas, Bokuto…” Akaashi whispered between kisses.

“Merry Christmas, Akaashi…” Bokuto replied.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I truly hope you guys enjoyed this chapter! 
> 
> I just wanted a very happy bokuaka moment and I have to say either im in a very emotional state or just the Finding Neverland soundtrack gets to me, but I was crying as I wrote this cause goddammit just thinking about Bokuto as a foster child without christmas... Ugh I can't take it...   
> Anyways! dont forget to tell me what you loved, hated, or thought about this chapter! I hope you all enjoyed it and that you tell me all about what your thoughts on Natsu, Bokuto, and Akaashi are <333 I look forward reading your comments. 
> 
> I think I was going to say something else, but again, im like dead inside cause i havent slept so i forgot... yay!! 
> 
> Love you all <333   
> http://ahominebaka.tumblr.com/


	10. The Fire

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bokuto chuckled, “Why me?”
> 
> “I don't know…” Iwaizumi hesitated, unsure of what to say to convince Bokuto into going to the party, suddenly his tone changed as if he had a brilliant idea, “I mean, it's an agency, there will be agents… For writers… Didn't you say Akaashi was a writer?”
> 
> Bokuto remained silent for a few seconds, his face reddening as he thought about coming back home with the news of such opportunity for someone like Akaashi, he wanted to give him the chance he had been hoping for, and he didn’t care how many parties he had to attend or how many uptight suited assholes he would have to put up with for as long as they gave Akaashi´s writing an opportunity, “Okay!” He finally blurted out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello guys!!~ 
> 
> Oh my goodness, I'm so sorry for the incredible delay I've got going on! I know I'm like super late with all the chapters but hear me out on this; I just moved to a new city and got two new jobs. I wasn't even planning on doing this at it was more like a sudden choice so everything's a mess, I still don't have wifi at home and I'm posting this chapter I wrote in an email from my office?? So life is seriously a complete hectic mess! 
> 
> Either way I hope you enjoy this chapter, I will try to post The Odd Mix's chapter tomorrow, but please understand I am doing the best I can given the situation. I am trully sorry and I hope to continue having you guys as woinderful readers <3333 
> 
> http://ahominebaka.tumblr.com/

How many more hours would Bokuto have to spend with Akaashi to figure out he loved him wholeheartedly and found him to be the most perfect man in the world? How many days? Or months? Maybe even years?

Well, the answer was quite simple; None.

Akaashi was the stones you rub together to ignite a fire inside Bokuto, he was the match that set light to an entire room, even with his own quietness and calmed attitude, there was no comparison to the warmth and noise Bokuto felt within himself whenever they were together. He couldn't put it into words, but all he knew was ever since he had decided to ask the barista for his name, his life had become a rollercoaster of energy, emotions, and adventures.

Akaashi couldn't say exactly the same, his life had always been hectic, a rushed motion of occurrences that never seemed to match or always left an odd sensation, a hopeful wish to live like anybody else, but a silent gratitude to the specialty of every day.

Even though he had always been wildly regarded by the gods, his life had ceased to be all about the mafia, the shady business, and the violence. Now, his adventures were… A little bit different.

“Bokuto… What are you doing?” He asked with a sigh, a warm pan in his hand as he tried to cook some proper breakfast.

Bokuto stood behind him, his hands restlessly moving on Akaashi´s hip, his fingers caressing his skin and his fingertips gently pressuring him to move one way or another, “I want to dance with you, Akaashi!”

He sighed once more, trying to repress the soft smile that his lips were trying to form, “I'm trying to cook here, Bokuto…” He replied putting down the pan and hesitantly turning to him.

“I know… But that can wait, I can't” Bokuto replied with a pout that quickly changed into excitement once Akaashi turned to him.

Akaashi rose an eyebrow, “Cooking can wait, but your sudden need to dance can't?”

Carefully, Bokuto guided him towards the living room, their hands together holding each other as their slow steps walked towards the spacious room. The food hissing in the pan that tried to cool down, Bokuto's giggles as he stepped back and looked into Akaashi's eyes, and the flickering Christmas lights on the green and adorned tree embellished the scene in odd ways, making it something Akaashi never thought he would live.

“I'm bored…” Bokuto explained, this time, his mind far more focused on their slow dance, his eyes looking up and down Akaashi's body almost as if he had to think what step to take next.

Akaashi nodded, “I figured, ever since Natsu's parents came to pick her up you've been annoying.”

Bokuto looked at him with surprise and a dramatically offended face, “I am not annoying!”

“No?” This time, Akaashi couldn't help but giggle slightly, his hair shuffling gently with every movement, “Then what are you?”

Bokuto bit his lower lip as he tried to think, his eyes looking around the room but then they looked back into Akaashi's and his smile widened “I am adorable, exciting, lively, and… I do not annoy you, if anything…” He pulled him closer, almost into a hug, “You love me.”

Akaashi laughed loudly this time and pushed him away, “I do not!” He continued to laugh, “Now let me cook in peace.”

Bokuto huffed as he heard his phone ringing from the couch. He approached it and picked it up, seeing Iwaizumi as the income caller, “Well, well, how was Christmas with your beautiful actor?”

Iwaizumi chuckled from the other side, “It was good, barely came home just now.”

“Oooh! You spent the weekend with him!!” Bokuto almost yelled in excitement, “It's Monday, so I'm guessing you're going to work?”

Iwaizumi sighed “Actually, I just talked to Kiyoko, she won't open the school until New Year's eve. She was going to call you now, but I suggested I do it instead since I have to ask you something myself…”

Bokuto hesitated, “Sure, is everything okay?”

“Yeah, yeah… Uhm…” He cleared his throat, “Do you have any plans for new years?”

Bokuto tilted his head and glanced at Akaashi who distractedly served the food on the plates, “I don't know, why? What's up?”

Iwaizumi sighed, “well, Oikawa invited me to this party in the agency… A plus one is mandatory and I thought maybe you would like to come?”

Bokuto chuckled, “Why me?”

“I don't know…” Iwaizumi hesitated, unsure of what to say to convince Bokuto into going to the party, suddenly his tone changed as if he had a brilliant idea, “I mean, it's an agency, there will be agents… For writers… Didn't you say Akaashi was a writer?”

Bokuto remained silent for a few seconds, his face reddening as he thought about coming back home with the news of such opportunity for someone like Akaashi, he wanted to give him the chance he had been hoping for, and he didn’t care how many parties he had to attend or how many uptight suited assholes he would have to put up with for as long as they gave Akaashi´s writing an opportunity, “Okay!” He finally blurted out.

Iwaizumi remained silent, almost as if he didn't believe Bokuto had agreed to go so quickly, “O-okay?”

Bokuto shrugged even though Iwaizumi couldn't see him, “why not? You have a compelling argument, sounds exciting to get a chance like that for someone like him.”

Iwaizumi sighed in relief, “Thank you so much, Bokuto… I'll see you that day then?”

“Yes! But do I have to dress in any specific way?” Bokuto asked as he walked towards the kitchen, obeying to Akaashi's signals that indicated breakfast was ready.

Iwaizumi thought about it, “Yeah, it's a pretty uptight dinner, so be classy… And… Like, try to behave.”

Bokuto giggled as he kissed Akaashi's nape, “You said try, and try I will.” He replied before hanging up.

Akaashi turned to him as he tried his breakfast, “Everything alright?”

Bokuto nodded with an excited smile, he would keep this attempt a secret, mostly because he knew Akaashi would kill him and give him his -no charity line- if he knew, but also because he didn't want to get his hopes up for nothing, “Iwaizumi wants me to go to this party with his boyfriend.”

Akaashi tilted his head, “I thought you said they were only a complicated thing? That actor and him are dating now?”

Bokuto shrugged, “He hasn;t said anything, but if it has gone for this long already, Iwaizumi cares about him whether he is ready to admit it or not.”

Akaashi nodded slowly as he watched Bokuto try the food, “How is it?”

Bokuto smiled with his mouth full and nodded, “Perfect, just like you” He replied after swallowing down the food.

Akaashi rolled his eyes, “So… Natsu's parents. They seem nice.”

Bokuto nodded as well, “I guess.” He chuckled. Natsu's parents had come to pick her up a few hours after they woke up, and although they had only caught a glimpse of Akaashi, they had been already very welcoming and nice to him, “It's hard to believe the same people kicked Hinata out just because he didn't want to go to university…”

Akaashi tilted his head, “I mean, Hinata's parents kicked him out for a few other things… Hinata is quite troublesome on his own, he doesn’t make the best choices you could think a grown up would go with.”

Bokuto looked back at him, “He seems quite relaxed to me.”

“Sure,” He laughed loudly, “Maybe when he's asleep, but when it comes to energy, he’s twice Natsu's spirit.”  He shrugged, “I don't know, it's an odd family I guess. Do they always leave you to Natsu's care?”

Bokuto nodded, “They don’t have anyone else, I'm the closest person they can probably rely on, so they usually ask me to babysit her while they are gone. I like it. She's my favorite student, I know I shouldn’t have one, but when it comes to Natsu, I can’t help it.”

Akaashi sighed as he tried to repress a chuckle, “Well, either way, I’ll finish breakfast and go back to my place. I have to work soon.”

Bokuto pouted, “You don’t get holidays??”

Akaashi shook his head, “I’m working on New Year’s too.” He sighed, “Don’t know why, I can’t really think of anyone who would choose to spend the night at a cafeteria, but I’m not the right person to judge.”

Bokuto hummed as he nodded slowly, “Any chance I can come with you?”

“Now? Like to my place?” Akaashi asked as he rose an eyebrow.

Bokuto tilted his head, “Well I was thinking maybe I could go with you to your place and then as you go to work I’ll go run some errands.”

Akaashi hesitated, thinking about it for a few seconds before nodding, “Fine. But don’t get any ideas, you know this-”

“Is just a physical thing, yes.” Bokuto finished for him with a grin plastered on his lips, “No worries, I intend to make you fall in love with me, but I doubt walking you to your place will make you fall for my charm.”

Akaashi groaned and shook his head before chuckling.

\----

Silence, it was the right word to describe their walk to Akaashi’s home. They had been talking for so long throughout the weekend, the playing with Natsu, the enjoying the Christmas aura, even their nights filled with love and passion as they tried to keep it down to not wake the tiny human up.

Bokuto couldn’t think of a time he had been happier, sure Akaashi only thought of it as a physical thing, he only saw things as they were; just sex. But deep down there was a personal touch to everything.

The caring enough for Bokuto to celebrate Christmas together, the gentle voice he used whenever they woke up together, even the delicacy with how he cooked breakfast and worriedly asked if it tasted good enough or not. Those were small things anyone would have overlooked any other day, things anyone would have found normal or just daily things… But when Bokuto thought about how Akaashi used to be, the roughness of his personality and his change of attitude whenever Bokuto got too close to comfort…

Bokuto was growing on him, maybe not to be loved yet… But he was at least becoming someone he cared about, someone he didn’t care talking to for hours or sharing small details about his daily life.

There were obviously some things he still didn’t manage to obtain, Akaashi still pushed him away with some things, and his insecurities about his past became even more evident around Natsu. He didn’t want his tattoos to be very visible, and even after she grew fond of them and began to constantly draw all over his skin, he would still flinch every time she pulled up his sleeves and yelled in excitement. His face whitened every time Natsu would ask him why he looked so tough and serious, or even whenever she indicated how different to Bokuto’s attitude he was.

But he misunderstood. He misunderstood all of that and no matter how many times Bokuto tried to explain to him that, there was no way he could manage to get him to understand the amazement and love for his attitude and the difference in their personalities were nothing but a contrast between both men. Just because Akaashi wasn’t like Bokuto, just because he wasn’t all sunshine and bright attitude… It didn’t mean he was a bad person.

The fear with every movement and word warmed Bokuto’s heart, but at the same time, the need for distance in fear of scaring away those around him saddened him. It wasn’t only about showing love and wanting to be loved back, it wasn’t only about Bokuto’s promise to make Akaashi fall in love with him, it was also how much he needed him to be happy, how much he wanted to give him the opportunity of a normal and sweet life, leaving behind his dark past that he so desperately wanted to forget.

“What are you thinking?” Akaashi asked as he looked around the stores, his hands in his pockets and his soft black hair covering part of his eyes.

Bokuto glanced at him with a soft smile, “Just how much I really want to hold your hand.”

“No way,” Akaashi replied grumpily.

Bokuto chuckled and shook his head, “Why not? Are you shy?”

Akaashi turned to him with a glare, “Not shy, just not wanting to broadcast who I sleep with.”

“Oh!” Bokuto widened his eyes, “But what if I start yelling the words –I’m sleeping with this man-? Will you then agree to hold my hand?”

Akaashi frowned, “Why would you do that? And how would that help me decide to do so?”

Bokuto giggled, “Well people would know we sleep together, there would be no broadcasting if they already know!”

He sighed and shook his head as he looked away, “Let’s just get to my place.”

Bokuto nodded, “Don’t worry, I’m just kidding. I mean, I do want to hold your hand, but I understand you don’t want me to.”

They continued to walk, their steps slow and tired. The weather was cold as the winter had settled in properly and the stores offered their warmth every time they passed one by. The soft music muffling together, and the people that happily walked around as they were ready to make the preparations for New Year’s eve.

And then it all disappeared with the loud sirens.

The crowd gathering at one street, the one that meant the final turn to reach Akaashi’s building. The alley where he lived was filled with people and the street was blocked by police cars and fire trucks, everything was wildly noisy as the people muttered the words ‘building… burnt… ashes…’

As they finally reached the alley, their eyes widened and their jaws almost hit the ground. The painted walls, the shadowed windows, every trace of Akaashi’s building was black, covered in ashes, and the smoke pouring out of every corner.

The firemen leaned against their truck as they wiped their forehead, knowing they had finally accomplished to shut down a fire that could have propagated to other buildings and destroyed the entirety of a block.

“Akaashi that’s…” Bokuto mumbled, but before he could finish the sentence he felt how Akaashi began to run towards the building, and before he could react and stop him, he saw him go inside.

Bokuto ran after him, ignoring the yells from the firemen and trying his best to catch up with him. They ran up the almost destroyed stairs and into the apartment, where he saw Akaashi walk through the ashes of what used to be his living room and towards his room.

Hesitantly, Bokuto followed him, “Akaashi, what are you doing? This is dangerous. We shouldn’t be here…” He mumbled.

Akaashi didn’t seem to be listening, instead, he entered his bedroom and shuffled through the piles of burnt down things, shaking his hands every once in a while whenever he touched something that was still slightly burning up.

After he shuffled through what used to be his belongings, Bokuto could finally catch a glimpse of the old desk where Akaashi sat every morning, writing away and focused on every word.

“Akaashi, I don’t think all you wrote survived the fire…” Bokuto mumbled as he stood by the door frame, his heart clenched in his chest at the sight of Akaashi’s uneven and nervous breathing.

Akaashi shook his head, his hands continuously moving things around, “No… No, that’s not…”

And then Bokuto saw it… The destroyed and burned typewriter he had given him only a few months ago, lying on the floor underneath the pile of ashes. Akaashi’s fingers caressed it, his jaw clenched and his eyes examining it, wondering if he could still use it in any way.

Bokuto kneeled down next to him, “Akaashi…”

“Bokuto… I’m… I’m sorry…” He whispered.

Bokuto moved his hand up to Akaashi’s black hair and carefully caressed his nape before pulling him closer and into a hug, “Don’t apologize to me, it’s just a typewriter… If anything I’m glad you’re safe…”

Akaashi rested his weight on Bokuto as he shook his head, “No… But…”

“I’ll buy you a new one, I don’t care… I’ll even buy you a computer if you want. Don’t worry about it.” Bokuto whispered, “It’s just a typewriter.”

Akaashi gripped himself to Bokuto’s clothes, “I…” But his voice was a soft chocked out sound and just as Bokuto began to wonder if he was alright, he realized Akaashi was crying against his shirt.

Unable to find the words, he simply hugged him tightly, running his fingers through his black hair and whispering “It will be okay…”

After a few minutes, Bokuto sighed and shook his head, “Akaashi we have to get out of here… Come on, you’ll stay at my place.”

Hesitantly, Akaashi nodded and stood up with him, “I will try to find a place, I don’t have to stay with you, I can call Hinata and…”

“Okay, we’ll talk about this later, come on.” Bokuto insisted, extending his hand to him.

Just as Akaashi was about to take it, his phone began to ring in his pocket. Filled with confusion, he reached down to it and grabbed it. His face whitened as he looked down at the unsaved number.

“Yahaba,” Akaashi said as he answered the phone, his voice changed into a deep and angry tone.

“Aaah… Akaashi, my dear sweet brother… I take it you already saw what I did to your beautiful new home?” Bokuto could hear Yahaba’s voice from the phone, his mocking and cold tone electrifying his skin and filling him with a mixture of fear and hatred.

Akaashi’s body tensed up, “I will find you, Yahaba, and I will kill you with my own hands.”

Yahaba laughed on the other side, a loud sound that sent shivers down Bokuto’s spine, “And I will continue to burn your life to the ground in the meantime… That is… Until you accept you must come back to us.” He laughed some more, “I hope to see you soon, dear brother.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter! 
> 
> I can't wait to finish up settling down in my new place, I really want to get back on schedule with all the chapters and the upcoming stories. Once again, I'm truly sorry! I will do my best, I promise!   
> In the meantime, don't forget to tell me what you loved, hated, or thought about this chapter! Also, I hope you guys are having a wonderful time and you can always talk to me on tumblr! 
> 
> http://ahominebaka.tumblr.com/


	11. The Flinch

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “I see you’re not good at poker?” Iwaizumi asked focusing only on Oikawa.
> 
> “He’s dreadful, but maybe you are better at bluffing?” An obviously rich man with black messy hair asked, his eyes shining and his lips formed into an evil grin.
> 
> He was the same guy who had been dragging the huge pile of chips closer to his side of the table, his cards endlessly winning every hand, and his drink to his side changing every now and then for a re-filled glass.
> 
> “He’s not only bad at bluffing, but he’s also blind when it comes to calling other people out,” Bokuto replied with a cheeky tone from behind Iwaizumi, he was unable to contain his excitement, he wanted to sit with this man and talk endlessly.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And here we are! 
> 
> Okay, as I said on tumblr, on the notes for Glassed View, and probably on the notes for The Odd Mix... I am TERRIBLY sorry for this delay <3333 Seriously guys thank you so much for your patience and for sticking with me even after I took so long to get back on schedule. It's going to be a tight summer with my messy work life, but hopefully once I go to uni in September things will be easier. Either way! Here you go! 
> 
> I hope you guys enjoy this chapter! Song I recommend... "No Use - Dreaming Bull" or "I'm the King - Six Def"
> 
> Love you all!  
> http://ahominebaka.tumblr.com/

The sun set through the windows, the large blinders covering it all, and only letting small squares of light into the rooms and against the walls, forming shapes of all kinds and leaving the strange warmth that evolved with the silence.

Bokuto sat on his living room couch, facing Akaashi who kneeled before the table, staring down at the darkened object in front of him.

The typewriter.

A burned down machine that had no resemblance to what it used to be, consumed by the flames, losing all its magic that once had and now consisted of a pile of ash that Akaashi had insisted on picking up and bringing into Bokuto’s apartment.

“Are you okay, Akaashi?” Bokuto asked timidly, his voice low and lost in his breath.

Akaashi remained silent, his eyes unblinking staring down at the blackness that stained the metal antique.

Bokuto cleared his throat and looked around, shuffling his fingers awkwardly and taking a deep breath, “I will buy you-”

“I don’t want a new one.” Akaashi finally spoke, his eyes changing into a glare, almost as if his broken soul had now transformed into a deep fury that flowed through his veins, “I don’t want…” He hesitated, biting his lower lip and clenching his fists, “I want Yahaba’s head, I will end him myself. I will kill him.”

Bokuto frowned, “You... Weren’t serious when you told him you would kill him, right?” He gulped.

Akaashi looked up to him, the blackness in his eyes raging with the fire that Yahaba had used to burn down his home and belongings. The vein on his neck thickened as if the blood in his body couldn’t flow for as long as Yahaba continued to breathe. His upper lip shook, making a face of disgust at the sole thought of that man’s life.

Bokuto watched him, unsure of what to do or say next. He had never seen that side of Akaashi. He had seen him angry, relentlessly trying to avoid someone’s contact, or simply defensive or small matters. But never aggressive. Never cold. Never willing to take a man’s life in exchange for a typewriter.

“Akaashi, it’s just a stupid machine…” Bokuto pleaded, his eyes almost tearing up at the thought of having the man in front of him lose all the progress he had gone through since he left his criminal family behind. He wanted him to have a better life, to live as a free man through the world, without being chased by the shadows of his past.

Akaashi shook his head, “It’s not about the typewriter itself…” He hesitated, “It’s what they feel they can do with someone’s life. It’s about what they take from me, what they’ve taken, the danger they mean to you or anyone else in my life…” He clenched his jaw, “It’s about the fire they started and how I will put it out myself.”

Bokuto looked into his eyes, feeling a slight fright running through his body, wondering if it was ever a good idea to piss off someone like Akaashi, and even thinking maybe getting involved with an ex-yakuza hadn’t been that much of a good idea. But no, he shook that thought off immediately. He couldn’t care less about the violence, the fires, or the aggressiveness that Akaashi meant in that precise moment. He knew the man, he knew him like the soft river that floated up his arm, like the Goddess of Mercy, or like the waves that accompanied the cherry blossoms and chrysanthemums that he had engraved on his skin. But he was now getting to know him like the tiger on his chest, the dragon on his back, the Samurai Benkei… All the ink that showed his dangerous side, the way he was ready to show his teeth and bite off someone’s limbs if it meant surviving or saving someone else.

“You promised Mercy…” Bokuto mumbled, his eyes not looking up from the table as he watched the deepest darkness that his life now meant, “The Goddess of Mercy… You said you wanted to be merciful…”

Akaashi frowned, blinking a few times and processing the words, “…Mercy?” He scoffed, “Do you even know what Yahaba is capable of? Do you know what the Oyabun is willing to do to get me back??”

“I don’t care,” Bokuto quickly replied, “I don’t care what they do or try to do, I don’t think it’s fair that you go down because of assholes like that.” He sighed and ran his fingers through his hair, “We said this has nothing to do with them, you are trying to move on… Have an honest life…”

Akaashi gently slammed his hand on the table, “But they won’t let me! How am I supposed to move on when they keep knocking at my door??”

“I…” Bokuto shook his head, his eyes wide and his mind stressed as if he tried to look through a cloud of smoke attempting to find a solution, “I…”

“I WHAT?!” Akaashi yelled, but as soon as he saw Bokuto’s flinch and his childish eyes turn into a deep and uncontrollable fright, his attitude changed. First shame, then sorrow, and finally love, “I’m sorry… I’m sorry Bokuto…”

Bokuto remained silent, he only looked away, too shy to let anyone see that side of him. The reminder that life isn’t pretty, the horrible memory of what reality feels like, leaving the taste of ashes to remain between your lips as you try to grasp your thoughts with the current unfairness that life means to everyone.

Akaashi rose to his feet, extending his hands towards him and with a trembling voice he apologized again, “I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have yelled at you, please forgive me…”

Bokuto shook his head, “I know, it’s okay… I just… Can’t think clearly…”

Akaashi hesitated, his fingers caressing Bokuto’s and his eyes watching his expression, “Well… Why don’t you go to this party… I’ll go to work and we can talk about this later?”

Bokuto nodded, “Okay… But… Can you promise me-”

“I promise you I won’t go anywhere, I will come back here straight after work so we can talk things. No stupid decisions from my part.” Akaashi agreed almost immediately, his eyes tender and apologetic while his smile gave a fond and childish aspect to his face.

 

\-----

 

Bokuto and Iwaizumi stood at the large and crystal gates of Shiratorizawa Agency. Both dressed in fancy suits, their hair neatly done even though Bokuto felt weird without his spiky white and black hair. Having it slicked back was not his everyday style.

Iwaizumi talked to a large bodyguard who asked for their invitations, Bokuto watched their exchange, his mind trying to figure out how unbearable these people were going to be. Would he end up running away? Maybe this wasn’t the right place for Akaashi to be represented after all… But he couldn’t choose that for him, he had to at least get him this opportunity and then it would be Akaashi himself who decided whether this was what he wanted or not.

The bodyguard finally let them through, and as they walked through the darkened offices, Bokuto leaned towards Iwaizumi, “Shit be real among these rich peeps… This better be fun, or else I’ll just get wasted.” He laughed, even though part of him was very concerned about the suffering he was probably going to endure.

Iwaizumi chuckled, “Don’t worry, I know of someone you’ll get along with just fine…” He mumbled.

Bokuto followed him into the fancy elevator as he tried to figure out what he could mean by that, the soft melody of a waiting room resounding in the background as they moved up the floors. Their hands in their pockets and their mouths shut probably worried about the same thing.

Finally, the elevator stopped and the doors opened, letting the soft music mix with the environment. What Bokuto saw… Was nothing he could have expected.

Men and women in fancy suits and dresses, around twenty people, gathered in a large room, drinks in their hands as the waiters passed between them with large trays, inviting for more alcohol and ready to take the empty glasses. Loud voices, blues music… All Bokuto could think was… Las Vegas?

And then he heard the loud sounds of cheering mixed with complaints, the laughter and claps of happiness Bokuto could recognize anywhere… Just as he was about to look in the direction where said noises came from, he heard someone call Iwaizumi’s name.

They both looked at their side and found Oikawa sitting at a large table. More men and women sat around, their hands holding cards as they watched a man who sat next to Oikawa gather all the chips to himself, pulling them closer with both his arms.

They walked closer, and Iwaizumi greeted his beloved actor, “I see we are late?”

Oikawa sighed and pouted, “You’re actually just in time, I’m losing a lot of money and I was hoping for a good excuse to get out.” He chuckled.

Bokuto vibrated behind him, his shoulders tense and his lower lip hiding in his mouth as he viciously bit it, watching the game, the chips, the cards, all the money he could sack from those guys…

“I see you’re not good at poker?” Iwaizumi asked focusing only on Oikawa.

“He’s dreadful, but maybe you are better at bluffing?” An obviously rich man with black messy hair asked, his eyes shining and his lips formed into an evil grin.

He was the same guy who had been dragging the huge pile of chips closer to his side of the table, his cards endlessly winning every hand, and his drink to his side changing every now and then for a re-filled glass.

“He’s not only bad at bluffing, but he’s also blind when it comes to calling other people out,” Bokuto replied with a cheeky tone from behind Iwaizumi, he was unable to contain his excitement, he wanted to sit with this man and talk endlessly.

The man rose an eyebrow, “Who’s the owl looking guy?”

Iwaizumi cleared his throat, “This is Bokuto, my co-worker and plus one.”

Bokuto crossed his arms, “If you’re so confident when it comes to winning, you won’t be scared to take me on, right?” He asked daringly.

He grinned, “Oh, I was hoping you’d come…” He signaled for Oikawa to move away, making him stand up and walk towards Iwaizumi, “Sit, maybe I’ll end up not only taking your money, but I might also take you home.” He winked at Bokuto.

Bokuto eagerly sat to his side, “Oh darling, you wouldn’t be able to handle this, not at a poker table, let alone in bed. Besides, I’m afraid I’ve got my eye on someone else.” He grabbed his cards, getting comfortable on what used to be Oikawa’s chair.

“Is that so? Well, it’s alright; I’m tied to someone else anyways.” He chuckled while gesturing with his chin towards a short man with badly dyed blond hair. He sat only a few seats away from them, a pile of chips between his arms and bored eyes that searched through the room.

Almost immediately and with a sigh, he put down his cards and stood up, “Please don’t talk as if there was actually something between us, Kuroo.” He said in a bored tone, “I’m going to the restroom and to get a drink.” He walked away.

Iwaizumi sighed, “Please behave, or I swear I’ll kill you.” He whispered in Bokuto’s ear.

Bokuto smirked and without taking his eyes off of the man named Kuroo he replied, “Don’t worry Iwaizumi, I’m planning on leaving this party with my pockets full of this brat’s money.”

Just as the three other men walked away, Bokuto and Kuroo remained at the table, their eyes meeting each other while a huge smirk was being formed on both their lips. Without saying a word, Kuroo grabbed a very large pile of chips from his own mountain and pushed it towards Bokuto’s side of the table, “I’ll never let a brother starve.”

Even though Bokuto felt the temptation to look down and see how much money he had between his arms, he maintained the eye contact in an almost unblinking manner, “How generous of you, I took you for a greedy man…”

“Oh well, just because I win big doesn’t mean I need it,” Kuroo replied in a chuckle, the tension between them enchanting, exciting, seducing. “Besides,” He continued, “Consider it an investment. If you win, I win.”

Bokuto grinned and toyed with a few chips between his fingers, “Is this a partnership proposal?”

“Take it as you will. I’ve been coming to these parties for far too long and it’s always the same old boring people… You’re interesting, attractive, and bold. There’s something about you… I know we’ll get along just fine.” Kuroo replied, his eyes continuing to stare back at Bokuto, ignoring the men and women who looked around in disapproval at his remarks about them.

“Oh yes,” Bokuto nodded as he grabbed his cards, “we have a long road ahead of us, you and me…”

They began to play, the first few hands in silence as Bokuto adjusted to Kuroo’s silent signals and began to recognize the rest of the player’s bluffing habits.

“You learn fast…” Kuroo pointed out as he watched Bokuto pulling the pile of chips closer.

Bokuto grinned, “Consider yourself lucky I’m in this partnership then.” He chuckled, “So you and blonde?” He asked as he tilted his head towards where the small man  that was sitting by the bar.

Kuroo looked in said direction before widening his eyes, “Kenma and I? Nah…”

Bokuto laughed and shook his head, “You’re so bad at bluffing, I’m surprised you won this much without me.”

Kuroo stirred his drink and chugged it down before looking back at him, “Meaning?”

He shrugged, “When you’re spitting bullshit, your shoulders flinch, only a tiny bit, barely visible, but it’s there… And let me tell you, you’re a big big liar…”

Kuroo grinned and put his empty glass down, he turned to a waiter with a cheeky smile still alive on his lips, “Two martinis please.”

He knew Bokuto was lying, he knew the other players were listening, desperate for a way to corner them, and now they had it. They had a way to know if Kuroo was bluffing or not… Except there was no flinch, and now they would be looking for it, they would see it in every play and every hand, making them lose more and more while Kuroo and Bokuto won.

And they won; they won together, emptying people’s pockets until they began to drop watches and car keys on the table to replace the lack of chips or real bills. Some stood up and left the game, too fed up with this evil partnership of thieves, while others stubbornly remained seated, willing to fight the two drunken men that continued to laugh every time they won and pulled the chips and items closer.

“The flinch! There’s the flinch!” Kuroo laughed loudly as the last men at the table continued to lose, “I’m bluffing!”

Bokuto laughed with him, his glass being refilled for the tenth time since he had taken the seat at the table, his cheeks reddened and his body hot. Both had rolled up their sleeves, their neat hair now back to their usual messiness, their ties were undone and their voices loud and words slurred as the alcohol made its effect on them but not on the game.

“Fuck you, Kuroo… You do this every year, and now you have a friend to help you out. Just what I needed.” One of the men stood up and glared at both of them angrily before walking away.

“Aww come on, Kaname, don’t be like that… You still sit at this table every year!” Kuroo said, breaking into laughter and shrugging, “And let me tell you, I’ll make sure this handsome man of mine comes every year to do it all over again.”

Bokuto nodded in agreement before frowning, “Well, we might lose if you…”

“Flinch!” They both said at the same time before breaking into laughter and fist bumping across the table.

Kaname turned to the rest of men at the table and shook his head, “Come on guys, they already won… Let’s drop it here.”

They all groaned in annoyance and stood up, following the man and walking away through the crowd.

“That’s alright, all you have left to begin the year with is your shoes, and I don’t look good in brown anyways,” Kuroo said in laughter, knowing they could still hear him but not caring and probably too drunk to even try.

They both continued to laugh until they finally took a deep breath and drank from their glasses. Their eyes tired and their faces tense from all the laughing. They looked down at the table and began to divide the winnings into equal parts, car keys and all sorts of jewelry accompanying the shiny and colorful chips.

“So… You and Kenma then?” Bokuto asked again.

Kuroo laughed and shook his head, “I already told you-”

“You don’t flinch,” Bokuto interrupted him, “But you do slightly bite your lower lip when you lie. You don’t have to tell me anything if you’re not comfortable.”

Kuroo looked up to him and stared into his eyes, he reached into his jacket that rested on the chair beside him and took out a cigarette, “Thanks, but it’s not about that.”

Bokuto nodded, he could smell the scent of the tobacco and all he could think about was Akaashi. The alcohol in his blood made him miss him even more, yearn for him and wish he were there. He cleared his throat, “Then?”

Kuroo shrugged while lifting a glass above his head for the waiter to bring them more, “I just can’t answer the question.”

Bokuto nodded, “Ah, I understand… Is he also an actor?”

Kuroo looked at him with the cigarette between his lips before chuckling, “Hell no, he’d die on stage. He’s already at his limit in this small party; you should see him in bigger galas…” He shook his head, “He’s an agent.”

“Oh,” Bokuto widened his eyes, “So he’s your agent?”

Kuroo laughed this time, “Oh god no, he’d hate me as his client.” He shook his head again, “Kenma is the agent for writers.”

Bokuto froze, he could feel his body collapsing in time and his heartbeat slowing down as his mind tried to process a way to address the reason he was there; to give Akaashi an opportunity.

“What?” Kuroo asked bluntly as he grabbed the drinks from the waiter’s tray.

Bokuto blinked a few times, “What what?”

Kuroo shrugged, “You just went silent, is it because he’s the writer’s agent? Are you a writer or something?”

“Me? Oh god no!” He laughed, “Not me…”

Kuroo rose his eyebrow and smirked while exhaling the smoke, “Not you, but you know a writer…”

Bokuto hesitated before nodding, “I do, yeah…”

Only a few seconds of silence passed by, Kuroo glanced at Kenma who sat on the other side of the room, his eyes soft and yet at the same time with a hint of naughtiness. He chuckled, thinking something to himself and then turned to Bokuto, “Fine, I’ll hook you up.”

“Wait, what?” Bokuto asked in shock, “What do you mean?”

Kuroo laughed and shrugged, “I mean I will talk to Kenma about meeting your writer, who is it? A sibling? A friend?”

Bokuto shook his head and looked down at the table, scratching the back of his neck, “He’s… He…”

“He’s your boyfriend, got it.” Kuroo laughed, “Well luckily sexual orientation doesn’t really affect writers. Fans and admirers don’t really want sex from them, but more like an intelligent conversation or something, I don’t know.”

Bokuto nodded slowly, “Well, he’s not really a boyfriend… He’s a complicated guy…” He sighed, “But listen, you really don’t have to do this.”

Kuroo looked at him in confusion while tapping the cigarette against the ashtray, “Are you kidding me? You just helped me win a hundred grand! Each!” He laughed, “And as I said, I like you, I think you won a VIP pass into my best friend’s club.”

Bokuto laughed with him, “Well, I think I am more than happy to have come into this party, after all, I’m leaving with a hundred grand and a new best friend.”

Kuroo nodded in agreement, “Now, we need more drinks and you have to tell me all about this strange boyfriend but not boyfriend of yours.”

Bokuto sighed, “Oh boy, well get ready for a long story…”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You just gotta love this pair... Man, I can't wait to write more Kuroo not only on this fic but also on his own <333333
> 
> Anyways! I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter! Don't forget to tell me down in the comments what you thought about it, what you loved, hated, what you think about this pair and their first encounter, what Kenma will say or what will happen with Akaashi! Also, how's this summer going for you? Mine is dreadful, too hot, no breaks, and need for air con to be on 24/7 hahaha 
> 
> Anyways guys, have a lovely week! Thank you so much and I apologize once more  
> PS! I'll reply to all the comments this weekend!  
> http://ahominebaka.tumblr.com/


	12. The Previous Night

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Akaashi turned to him, “What the fuck do you think I’ve been trying to figure out??” He groaned, “You go to a party and come back practically next morning, wasted and being dropped off by a hot shirtless celebrity while you wear his shirt and yours in your hand! You act all weird, say you don’t remember anything and then walk out without saying a word, only to come back hours later, again! Wearing someone else’s clothes and acting all weird!”
> 
> Bokuto hesitated and squinted his eyes, “Are… Are you…” He stepped forward towards him, “Are you jealous?”
> 
> Akaashi’s eyes widened before turning into pure anger, “I’m not jealous! I’m annoyed! I don’t like being treated like an ignorant idiot! I’m not asking you to only be with me because we are not a couple and this is not emotional! Just don’t make me waste my time!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh my god i am exhausted but so happy to get this chapter out <3333
> 
> I hope you guys enjoy it and excuse the lack of wrding in this note but im just dying to crash cause Im seein double<333
> 
> Oh! And dont forget to check out the new fic in the series, "Flasback"! Telling Tanaka and Ennoshita's story <3333 
> 
> Love you all and thank you so much for the support!   
> http://sunshineparkacademy.tumblr.com/  
> http://ahominebaka.tumblr.com/

Winter mornings… In a way, they almost feel as if the world itself froze into a deep silence and an overwhelming sleep. Every opening of eyes takes its toll on the people, making them wish for longer holidays, the need to stay at home in the warmth of their sheets and the sweet company of their loved ones… Anything that doesn’t require going out, crossing the door that forms the entrance to their homes, and walking out into the frozen and almost perished land.

Bokuto himself, found this to be more than appropriate to the way he felt right there and then. His lungs filled with pain, his eyelids stuck to each other, his lips filled with tiny cuts that hurt more and more as he moved his mouth, and if he licked the surface of his skin, he could almost taste the almost gone traces of blood.

He moved around, his body feeling as if he had gotten into a fight during the previous night or simply someone had decided to charge him and beat him senseless.

Finally, and with much effort, he managed to open his eyes. He looked around, finding himself in his own room, his body naked underneath the sheets and his skin burning regardless of how electrified it felt at the freezing sensation of the outside world.

“Akaashi?” He called out, his voice coarse and gone into a whisper. The pain in his throat forming needles along the skin of his insides, making it almost unbearable. “Akaashi…” He tried once more, but there was no reply.

With much hesitation, he finally managed to climb out the bed; his skin feeling the horribleness of the cold environment that his room had become, and the deepest part of his brain pleading for him to go back to bed, crying out for the warmth and hoping for more rest.

“Akaashi?” He mumbled his steps slow and his hands against the wall as he felt the floor spinning underneath him. What the hell was happening?

He walked outside his bedroom and towards the living room, his heart almost racing at the uncertainty of what was happening, not only around him but to himself. Why did he feel like dying? Why was he feeling so weak? Where was Akaashi?

Just as he felt himself reaching a panicky state, he found him. He could see his black messy hair shuffling with every movement, his bare back filled with ink contrasting against the whiteness of his skin, the most beautiful man on earth, sitting on his couch and continuing to write whatever he had set his mind to for the past few days.

“Hey…” He whispered as he stepped closer and let himself fall on the couch.

Akaashi turned to him and chuckled, “I take it you had fun last night?” He asked before going back to his writing.

Bokuto sighed, “I don’t know, I don’t remember how I got home…”

“Yeah, I figured.” Akaashi pointed out in a mild laughter, his eyes squinted into a smile as he took a deep breath, “So… Who was that guy that dropped you off?”

Bokuto frowned, “The guy that dropped me off?”

Akaashi nodded, his eyes averting Bokuto’s face as he pretended to focus on his writing, “Black and messy hair, rich clothes… He dropped you off in a limo… And…” He cleared his throat, “And you were wearing his shirt, unbuttoned, yours in your hand, and he was shirtless…”

Bokuto lied back on his couch, his eyes staring up at the ceiling. He tried to remember what had happened the night before, but all his memories could form was a crazy poker night, and then the last thing was Kuroo asking about Akaashi, both of them drinking more and more alcohol as they discussed their love lives… And nothing else.

Bokuto shook his head and looked back at Akaashi, “I have no idea… I don’t remember much from that night… By the way, why is the heater turned off?”

Akaashi’s body tensed up and he glanced away, hesitant and opening and closing his mouth a few times. He took a deep breath and closed his eyes, giving up to whatever he was thinking about, “It’s not off… Why, are you cold?”

Bokuto nodded, “Yeah… I’m not feeling so well today…” He rubbed his face with his hands and sighed.

“Well, maybe you should put something on, for starters.” Akaashi replied cuttingly, “If you’re sick just go back to bed.” He stood up and began to walk away.

Bokuto glanced back in his direction, his eyes filled with confusion as to why the sudden change of attitude, “Wh-where are you going?”

“Work.” Akaashi snapped back as he grabbed one of his shirts and put it on.

Bokuto watched him, observing the way he quickly moved his arms through the clothing, the way he grabbed his bag and was ready to go. He checked his watch and looked up at him in surprise, “You do know you have like six hours left until your shift starts, right?”

Akaashi turned to him with a glare, “Yeah, well Bokuto, I don’t have to spend every freaking second of my life in your company, you know?”

Bokuto frowned and stood up, ignoring the dizziness of his body or the frozen touch of the ground against his feet, “Hey, what is going on?”

Akaashi hesitated and took a step back, but then his eyes looked down at the floor and he sighed, “I just-”

The conversation was interrupted by a loud ringtone. Bokuto’s phone vibrated wildly in his room, and as much as he wanted to ignore the call and continue the conversation, he had set that ringtone specifically for Kiyoko, a person who always texted and only called during emergencies.

“One second…” He mumbled raising his finger before walking away towards the bedroom. He looked for the phone through the bed and sheets and found it underneath his pillow. He grabbed it and picked it up, “Hello?”

He could hear loud voices on the other side, too much noise to even make out what they were saying, “Hello?” He finally heard, “Hello, Bokuto?”

“Yes! Can you hear me?” Bokuto replied, knowing he was probably yelling but not willing to risk the chance of not being heard during what seemed like an emergency.

“Bokuto!” Kiyoko yelled, but no matter how many times he replied, she wasn’t able to hear him, “Listen, we are at the academy! There’s an emergency meeting! Serious stuff is happening, please come down as soon as possible!” She yelled before hanging up.

He looked down at his phone, staring at the screen and hesitating. What could be so serious to call up a meeting so early and the day right after New Years? What could have happened to cause so much background noise at a quiet place like the academy?

He shook his head and walked to his closet, picking out the first items he could find and get dressed to leave as soon as possible. Once he was properly dressed, he grabbed a hoodie and walked towards his kitchen, searching through the cabinets for some sort of medicine to quiet down the pain of whatever battle his immune system was fighting.

“You’re leaving?” Akaashi asked with a soft tone but confusion.

Bokuto grabbed a small bag with the medicine powder and filled up a glass, pouring the medicine into the water and chugging it down, “Yeah, there’s… A situation, I think. I have to go.” He put the glass in the sink and rushed outside the apartment, leaving Akaashi behind in his living room.

 

\-----

 

Getting undressed at the incredibly cold academy, and dressing up with Iwaizumi’s clothes, someone who happened to be slightly smaller than him, had been a terrible idea when it came to Bokuto’s health… And running away, being chased by a fleet of paparazzi had only made it worse than it could get.

Once Bokuto had reached his workplace, he realized the outside was filled with people with large cameras, and they were the source of the loud voices he heard from the other side of the phone.

After entering the building and catching up with the events, he learned not only they were there for Iwaizumi, but they had found out about his “love affair” with Oikawa. They had been stalking him, getting information about him and his past, and then laying it all out there for the public to read and do whatever they wanted with said information.

Needless to say, Iwaizumi himself was on the verge of a panic attack, and to make things worse, it seemed Oikawa had opted for the easy way out and break things up.

Needing to get out of the building, Bokuto had come up with the excellent idea of exchanging clothes with Iwaizumi and pretending to be him as he lured the cameramen and reporters away from the academy, running for a few blocks alongside Suga before they finally stopped and confronted their followers, revealing their true identities.

Exhausted, and feeling even dizzier than before, Bokuto finally made his way home. Bags under his eyes, his skin hotter than ever, cold sweat dripping down his clothes, well, Iwaizumi’s clothes and his steps dragged as he walked towards his street.

He reached down for his cell phone and dialed Kuroo’s number. He waited, letting it ring against his ear and wondering if maybe Kuroo had given him the wrong one or he had saved it incorrectly, after all, they both were exaggeratedly drunk to even know how to dial a phone.

“Hello?” He heard a raspy voice reply on the other side.

Bokuto sighed, “Is this Kuroo?” He rubbed his eyes, knowing he was too drowsy to even have a proper conversation.

“Unfortunately,” Kuroo replied, “Who is this?”

Bokuto chuckled wondering how much longer he had gone out and partied after dropping him off, and to how many people he had given him his phone number, “I’m Bokuto, I don’t know if you re-”

“Oh! Bokuto!” Kuroo replied more eagerly before groaning in pain, “Yes, of course, I remember you! How could I not??” He chuckled, “How are you? Had a good night?”

Bokuto hesitated, taking a turn on the streets, hoping he was going the right direction, “Yeah about that…”

“You don’t remember shit, do you?” Kuroo said with a mocking tone, “Not surprised, you can hold your liquor but definitely not as well as me.” He sighed, “You are calling so I can enlighten you on the events from last night?”

Bokuto nodded even though Kuroo couldn’t see him, “That’s right, if you could, I would really appreciate it.”

He heard some shuffling on the other side, movements of what he could predict was Kuroo standing up from bed or wherever he was sleeping, “Well, my sweet owl friend, we played poker a good chunk of the night, then we kept drinking and talked about your lover boy and I talked about mine, the new years happened, then we went out to a party, then you came to my place…”

Bokuto froze where he stood, his legs shaking and about to give in. His mouth dryer than before and his heartbeat going so fast he could barely breathe.

“Don’t freak out, nothing happened.” He chuckled, “In fact, you got quite freaked out.”

Bokuto frowned, “What do you mean?”

“Well…” Kuroo sighed, “We came to my place so you could have somewhere to crash. You were saying you didn’t want Akaashi to find you like that and get the wrong idea or simply think you were a drunk idiot, right?” He chuckled, “Then you came to my place, but as soon as you sat on the couch you started to say Akaashi would find out you stayed the night at my place and then get an even worse idea…”

Bokuto sighed in both, relief and annoyance at himself, “I’m sorry for giving you such a hard night, I know I can be quite annoying or paranoid when I’m drunk…”

“Oh god no!” Kuroo laughed, “I’m glad you don’t remember much because I am way worse than you are, and we had some deep conversations I’m partly embarrassed by.” He laughed again.

Bokuto chuckled and nodded, “Yeah… Just… One last question?”

“Go for it, although if this is about Kenma calling you about Akaashi, I already took care of that, so he will probably do it sometime soon, hopefully, I don’t know, he’s hard to convince?.” Kuroo said almost in a rush.

“No no” Bokuto shook his head, “I mean thank you so much for that, honestly, but my question was about last night, something I don’t remember.”

Kuroo hummed, “Okay, I’ll try to be of help, what is it?”

“Well…” Bokuto scratched the back of his head, “Why exactly was I wearing your shirt unbuttoned while I had mine in my hand and you were shirtless?”

Kuroo laughed so loudly on the other side, Bokuto had to briefly move the phone away from his ear, “Oh, that!” He continued to laugh, “I kept telling you it was a stupid idea but you weren’t giving in!” More laughter.

Bokuto sighed, “Care to explain?”

“Well,” He chuckled, “You had a wine stain on your shirt, right on the collar, and you kept saying Akaashi was going to think you made out with someone and it was lipstick. No idea how you could think a wine stain looks at all like a lipstick stain, but hey you were drunk and I respect that. So I gave you mine and you were supposed to give me yours, but you just got off the car and walked away with both.”

Bokuto remained silent, “Are you kidding me?”

“No dude,” Kuroo laughed again, “I really got the hint you love this dude cause man, you were paranoid as fuck”

Bokuto sighed, shaking his head and closing his eyes, “What a mess… Why did we drink so much anyways?”

“Why not? You had fun, I had fun, we did stupid shit, and thankfully we can’t remember it.” He sighed, “Just take it easy dude, if you want me to remind you of anything else call me up, but don’t worry, you were a good boy. An overly paranoid good boy who wouldn’t stop talking about his yakuza boyfriend, but yeah.” He laughed.

“Thanks , Kuroo…” Bokuto mumbled, “And once again I’m very sorry for the mess…”

Kuroo gasped on the other side, “Don’t you dare feel guilty! We have to hang out more often okay??? I won’t take no for an answer! You’re my friend now, and one of the most fun people I’ve been out with for a long time!”

Bokuto chuckled, “Thanks, I can easily say the same! You can call me or text me whenever you like.”

“Same here, my owl friend, same here.” Kruoo said before hanging up.

\------

Finally, and after what I took a long hour, Bokuto reached his apartment building. He opened the front gate and walked up the stairs, too tired to even wait for the elevator to climb down the many floors it had reached above him. He arrived at his front door and gently knocked on it, leaning his forehead against it and almost falling asleep.

He could hear Akaashi’s steps approaching him, and then his hands shifting the knob as he opened the door to let him in. He stepped aside and examined him, probably wondering what on earth had happened to him.

“Hey,” He mumbled feeling the way the medicines were slowly being erased from his system.

Akaashi watched him, frowning and hesitant to say something, “You… You want to talk about it?” He mumbled.

“About what?” Bokuto asked in confusion as he stepped towards the couch and flopped down on it.

Akaashi shrugged, “I don’t know, I mean what… What happened? You just took off, you didn’t come back for hours…”

Bokuto sighed and rubbed his face, “Went to the academy… There was a heavy situation going on.

Akaashi frowned and crossed his arms, taking deep breaths as he tried to figure out whether he should speak out whatever he was thinking about or not, “And… And this situation required for you to change your clothes?”

Bokuto looked down and saw Iwaizumi’s outfit, he had been so drowsy he completely forgot he had exchanged clothes with his coworker. Slowly, he stood up and walked back to his bedroom, “Yeah… I’ll go get changed.”

“Dude, what the fuck is going on?” Akaashi asked angrily, making Bokuto freeze in place and slowly turned to him.

Bokuto hesitated, “What? What is it?”

Akaashi groaned and shook his head, “See? I knew it was going to be some shit like this.” He grabbed his bag, “You’re doing what everyone has done in the past, and I was stupid enough to buy your bullshit.”

“I… I don’t understand, what is going on?” Bokuto asked looking around.

Akaashi turned to him, “What the fuck do you think I’ve been trying to figure out??” He groaned, “You go to a party and come back practically next morning, wasted and being dropped off by a hot shirtless celebrity while you wear his shirt and yours in your hand! You act all weird, say you don’t remember anything and then walk out without saying a word, only to come back hours later, again! Wearing someone else’s clothes and acting all weird!”

Bokuto hesitated and squinted his eyes, “Are… Are you…” He stepped forward towards him, “Are you jealous?”

Akaashi’s eyes widened before turning into pure anger, “I’m not jealous! I’m annoyed! I don’t like being treated like an ignorant idiot! I’m not asking you to only be with me because we are not a couple and this is not emotional! Just don’t make me waste my time!”

Bokuto tilted his head, “Are you angry right now?”

“Yes!” Akaashi yelled, “I am!”

Bokuto chuckled and stepped even closer, “Then this is emotional, and I am not wasting your time.”

Akaashi clenched his jaw and looked away, “Yes you are, you are treating me like a fucking idiot.”

Bokuto shook his head, “If you really thought that, you would have walked out of my apartment hours ago. You know I’m not like that, you know I can explain it all…”

Akaashi frowned and stepped away, “I don’t need your fucking explanations!”

“I know.” Bokuto nodded, “But would you like to hear it? Please…”

Akaashi took a deep breath and shrugged, “Whatever.”

Bokuto smiled as he took this as an affirmative answer, “Okay well…” He grabbed his hand and guided him to the couch where they sat, “Have you seen the news?”

Akaashi shook his head, “No, why? What do the news have anything to do with-”

Before he could finish, Bokuto grabbed the TV remote and switched it on, showing how practically every channel was showing the news on Iwaizumi and Oikawa, they showed the events at the Academy, and a reporter mentioned the chasing of Iwaizumi that turned out to be Bokuto in disguise, “That’s why I had to leave, and that’s why I came back with someone else’s clothes… Iwaizumi’s clothes.”

Akaashi’s cheeks were red, his eyes nervously watched the images on the TV before looking back at Bokuto, “And… And last night?”

Bokuto sighed, “Well… We all know I am quite an idiot… So here it goes…” He began to tell him all the details Kuroo had previously explained to him on the phone, but he had tried to go on as much detail as possible, not only with things he remembered because he wasn’t drunk enough when they happened, but also trying to remember those he has forgotten but were now coming back to him.

The only thing he left out were the details regarding the conversation about him being a writer and the possibility to get Kenma to talk to him. Not only he didn’t want to get his hopes up, but he also had the strange feeling he would be very mad about it, at least at the beginning.

Akaashi nodded before quickly covering his face with his hands, “This is so embarrassing… I got so angry for nothing…” He mumbled.

Bokuto chuckled, “In your defense, as I said before, I am quite an idiot… So…” He laughed softly and leaned forward, pulling him closer into a hug, “I already told you I love you, I would never do anything to make you feel like I think you’re an idiot… And if you ever feel that way please know I am the idiot and I don’t realize what I’m doing…” Bokuto pouted, leaning his head against Akaashi’s shoulder.

Akaashi hesitated, his arms moving back and forth, doubting as to whether he should return the hug or not, but finally he agreed on hugging him back. “You’re burning up though… Let’s get you to bed before I have to go work.”

Bokuto stood up with the help of Akaashi, he slowly took off his clothes and climbed inside his bed, where he remained with Akaashi for a bit, talking more about the events from the previous night, until he fell asleep and Akaashi left for work.

His phone rang on his bedside table, startling him and waking him up. He grabbed it and check the message he had received from an unknown number.

_“Hello, I’m Kenma. Kuroo has asked me to check your friend’s work. Can we agree on a meeting? Thanks.”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have to say awkward Akaashi is something I live for! We'll definitely get to see more of his embarassment and thougts on this fight in the next chapter...
> 
> But hey! What do you guys think will happen when he finds out about Kenma? Will he be angry? Happy? grateful? Also, what do you think this fight meant for him?? don't forget to let me know in the comments <3333 
> 
> I hope you're all having a wonderful summer and getting lots of sleep, and if youre not, please do it for me cause I sure as hell need more sleepy time... hahaha love you all <3333  
> http://sunshineparkacademy.tumblr.com/  
> http://ahominebaka.tumblr.com/


	13. The Guilt

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bokuto frowned, “What… What are you doing here?” he mumbled, his voice slowly coming back to his throat as he had regained some health over the past days, but the fever still made everything unclear.
> 
> Akaashi looked down, his fingers mixing with Bokuto’s. He bit his lower lip and sighed, “Nothing, I just came back from work.”
> 
> Bokuto sat up, slightly whining in pain as he moved and leaned on his elbow, “I know… But why so early? You normally don’t come back until the sun went down.”
> 
> Akaashi sighed, “I…” He hesitated, his eyes looking around for coward words, but after taking a deep breath he closed his eyes for a few seconds and shook his head, “Bokuto, I got fired.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello guys!~ 
> 
> Well I'm finally able to post this chapter! I've been dying to put it here for you guys to read because it will give a whole new perspective on Bokuto and why he is the way he is... There's so much more we have to discover...  
> Either way, the good news is I got into University! (Which is part of the reason I've taken so long to post this) and another good news is that I am working less hours which mean I have more time to write!!... The bad news... Well the reason I'm working less is because I am dealing with some health issues, so I can't really write at the speed I've been writing in the past, and I have to take a lot of breaks so... Yeah... I'm not excusing myself, seriously, but I think I owe an explanation for the crazy schedule we've been having.  
> Hopefully once I get to uni things will calm down and I will have a better routine! 
> 
> Anyways! Song for this chapter... This Is Neverland by Jan A. P. Kaczmarek.
> 
> I truly hope you enjoy it guys!! <33333  
> http://sunshineparkacademy.tumblr.com/  
> http://ahominebaka.tumblr.com/

Once upon a time, in a not very far away land… A small child lived and died. 

His soul escaped through every pore of his body ever since he was born, only to clash against the walls of reality, exerting whatever he had left of humanity, normality, and leaving him with a shell of broken insides.

His name would forever remain untold, but even if it was written on every paper, wall or any surface you could think of… His name would not matter, for he does not exist anymore, lost in the shadows of his past, accompanying his loved ones… 

The deceased.

“Dad, where are we going?” He asked; his voice lost with the humming of the car, the clicking sound of the key chain dangling against the wheel, the muffled static radio as the rain collapsed against the windshield. He waited… “Dad?”

The father looked in the mirror to his child who sat in the backseat, his eyes looking up and down quickly, trying to keep them fixed on the road as much as he could, “What is it?”

“Where are we going?” He asked again, fidgeting his fingers as he looked outside.

His dad chuckled and shook his head, “We’ve told you already, darling, we’ve said it about ten times…”

“Probably more!” A female voice interrupted, her fingers caressing the father’s arm, her sharp nails painted in red and her wrists fine and decorated with thin and thick bracelets, “We are going to see your grandparents.”

The boy looked at them both, his eyes perplexed as he looked back out the window, “But… How far do they live??” He asked in shock, they had been in the car for long hours; they had been driving for almost half the day.

The mother giggled and shook her head, “Not so far, we are almost there.” She replied looking back at her son, her eyes filled with kindness and love as her lips formed into a charming smile that could only be seen in angel’s faces.

Oh, how the boy wished to let this story have a good ending, to make up for the horrible truth of the outcome. But God is a mysterious creature, one that caresses the fine threads of a harp, making every note climb through the instrument until it fades away… And sometimes He himself… Would stop the noise abruptly with a gentle touch of his palms.

“Dad… How much longer?” He asked after a few hours, his eyes carefully looking at the ever changing landscape, his childish voice mixed with a silent giggle as he tried to not wake his mother up.

But his father did not reply, he remained distracted, focused on the road. And the boy needed an answer, he needed the attention, he needed his father and the answer.

“Dad?” He unbuckled his seatbelt and leaned forward, placing himself between the two front seats.

His father turned to him in surprise and shock, “What are you doing?? Put your seatbelt back on!”

The boy chuckled, “I want to know how much longer, and you weren’t listening.”

His father shook his head, “Son, seat back and put your seatbelt on!”

“What… What is going on?” His mother asked drowsily, her eyes opening slowly as she looked around and rubbed her lips with her thin fingers.

But the boy didn’t understand, he didn’t comprehend the anger and danger in his father’s eyes, the sudden and urgent manner in which he was commanding him to sit back and put his seatbelt on. He didn’t…

And then his mother’s voice, the high pitch scream, the way she called after his father, making him turn back and see the road… The truck coming their way… The boy’s confusion worsened, he felt fear, he felt so scared…

And just like that… They were all gone.

In the bat of an eye, they all disappeared.

The parents were lost, the accident cost them their lives, letting them become a foggy memory. The child survived… But his mind remained on that road for the rest of his life. The guilt, the pain, the inability to move on… Oh that child died with them so long ago… And his name...

\------

“Bokuto.”

He flinched a few times, his fingers about to snap with the strength he was clenching his fists. His jaw strengthened and almost painful. He breathed in and then out, adjusting to his surroundings as he slowly opened his eyes, and leaving the nightmares behind.

He glanced down at the end of his bed where he could see his dark-haired man, his tattoos shining through the sunrays that climbed through the cracks of the blinders. His coat on his hand and his gloves in his pocket, but his neck remained hidden underneath the sweater.

Bokuto frowned, “What… What are you doing here?” he mumbled, his voice slowly coming back to his throat as he had regained some health over the past days, but the fever still made everything unclear.

Akaashi looked down, his fingers mixing with Bokuto’s. He bit his lower lip and sighed, “Nothing, I just came back from work.”

Bokuto sat up, slightly whining in pain as he moved and leaned on his elbow, “I know… But why so early? You normally don’t come back until the sun went down.”

Akaashi sighed, “I…” He hesitated, his eyes looking around for coward words, but after taking a deep breath he closed his eyes for a few seconds and shook his head, “Bokuto, I got fired.”

“What??” He asked in shock, this time fully sitting up and leaning towards Akaashi, “How? Why?? When??”

Akaashi shook his head once more, “All they told me was that some men in suits came by and told them to fire me or there would be consequences.” He explained with tension in his body.

“Men… In suits?” Bokuto asked with a frown, but just as he was about to come up with the answer, Akaashi replied.

“Yakuza.” He tilted his head, “Yahaba must have sent someone…”

Bokuto sighed and leaned back, his head against the pillow and one of his hands covering his eyes, “Jesus fuck… Don’t they ever get tired?” He whispered.

Akaashi cleared his throat, Bokuto could feel the uncomfortable feeling he was attempting to express, the way his eyes searched through the room as he felt slightly attacked, probably by the way this was entirely Akaashi’s fault.

Bokuto stopped, his body freezing at the thought of Kenma’s text. Maybe this was the perfect opportunity to bring this up? Maybe this was the greatest chance to cheer him up with good news?... No, Akaashi wasn’t the type… But he had to tell him, now more than ever.

“Akaashi…” Bokuto mumbled, his body slowly stiffening as he reclined himself up, “I… I have to tell you something.”

The man in front of him frowned, his eyes filled with confusion as his fingers moved nervously against Bokuto’s free arm, “Tell me something?”

Bokuto sighed, he shook his head and leaned forward, grabbing Akaashi’s hands and tangling his fingers between his. He stared into his eyes, unavoidably shaping a thick smile across his lips, his graze enchanted by Akaashi’s beauty, the need to hold him, the need to kiss him… He looked down and sighed again, “You’re going to be so pissed… But… Please hear me out, okay?”

Akaashi rose an eyebrow, leaning back as his body language denoting an increasing tension and need for a defensive attitude, “…O-okay…?”

Bokuto toyed with Akaashi’s fingernails against the tip of his own fingers, thinking, trying to figure out the best way to let him know about Kenma and the way he had managed to obtain a meeting for him and for his writing. He cleared his throat, “Well… In the New Year’s dinner… The guy I met…”

Akaashi nodded, “Kuroo, yeah I’ve seen him on movies. What about him?” He asked, his tone aggressive and cold, but mostly fearful for what he was about to hear.

Bokuto tilted his head, “Well… I talked to him about you… I told him that you’re a writer.” He trailed off, his voice lost in his eyes as he squinted them, hoping for Akaashi to get the hint of what he was trying to say. But he wasn’t being bold enough or clear enough, no one could understand what could possibly be what he had done unless he stated it clearly.

“Okay?...” Akaashi frowned and looked into his eyes, “Bokuto, what are you trying to say?”

Bokuto sighed in desperation, his head shaking as he tried to get rid of the uneasiness of pissing Akaashi off, and the sweatiness of his body caused by the fever only made everything harder to process. He felt overwhelmed, like encountering an obstacle before him, unsure of how to overcome it, and with no energy to even try to figure something out.

Akaashi watched him, his eyes growing more and more anxious. But then something inside of him hit a switch, like an inner voice that told him something only he could hear. He looked down, hesitating, biting his lower lip and thinking whatever he was coming up with. Finally, and after taking a deep breath, he looked up at Bokuto, “You… You told me nothing happened, right? Between you two?”

Bokuto frowned, “Of course not! I love you and I-”

“Okay.” Akaashi lifted his chin with a decisive attitude, “Then, whatever you will tell me can’t possibly be worse than hearing you cheated on me, so why are you so afraid?”

Bokuto hesitated, his eyes widened as he heard the words. Cheating? Was Akaashi confirming they were… More than just physical? And was he admitting that he was… Worried? That this meant to him more than what he was saying? He looked down, his cheeks red and his lips tense as he avoided forming a smile and giggling.

“Bokuto…” Akaashi whispered, “I don’t want you to be afraid of telling me things… I hate it every time you get so scared of pissing me off…” He sighed, “I know I can be… A little difficult… But…” He swallowed, his voice stuttered in his throat, “I… I can listen… I want to listen… And I want to… Try…” He looked down, silencing himself with the biting of his lower lip, almost so hardly he could make himself bleed.

Bokuto looked up again, almost like a game of shyness; one looking down as the other one watched him, and then the short exchange of gazes. Unable to hold back, he leaned forward, his hand against Akaashi’s soft skin, his fingers caressing his arm. He moved his lips against Akaashi’s cheek, carefully placing a soft kiss, almost untraceable if it wasn’t for the gentle tickles against his face. He sat back once more and nodded, “I told him you are a writer… He is kinda dating, or at least he is in love with an agent…”

“An agent?” Akaashi asked blinking in confusion.

Bokuto nodded again, “He works with writers, and he wants to meet you.”

Silence interrupted by the sound of heartbeats and breathes. The tension, the excitement, the fear… It all mixed in the room, and even more between their two bodies.

“An agent… For writers… Wants to meet me?” Akaashi repeated, his eyes lost in a dream as his hands gripped themselves to Bokuto’s, the feeling of falling, the need to hold himself onto whatever was close, and most importantly, to whoever was close. The adrenaline rushing through his body, the confusion of the sudden bad news of getting fired followed by the news of something like this…

Bokuto chuckled, “I know you will say you don’t need my charity, or anyone’s for that matter…” He shook his head, “But I didn’t plan this or orchestrated any of it. They just… Offered.”

“Offered…” Akaashi repeated once more. He was lost in his mind, trying to figure out what to say or do next. Slowly, he moved his hands away, watching every little thing in Bokuto’s room and frowning in confusion, as if the existence of every object was far too much for his current state. “I…” He stood up, his legs shaking just as his hands were, “I think…” But he didn’t finish the sentence; instead he walked out, leaving Bokuto in silence only to flinch at the sound of the entrance door that closed behind Akaashi.

“Oh…” Bokuto mumbled in a sigh, his hands shaking almost as much as Akaashi’s. He tried to understand what he was thinking or what he was doing, but he couldn’t think of anything… Was he angry at him? Probably. He would never come back, maybe only to get his things and yell at him for attempting to win him over with his stupid charity. He felt stupid, he should have stopped and not talked about him to Kuroo, he should have refused to obtain their help… But who was he kidding? He had gone there to meet someone connected to writers in the first place. He wouldn’t have gone to a stupid party filled with rich people and agents if it wasn’t for him…

He shook his head and flopped down on the bed, his body shivering with the cold and his hands searching for the sheets to cover himself up. He felt too tired… Too sick… Too broken and sad… And so he fell asleep.

\----

Opening his eyes, he could smell the scent of something delicious, almost enchanting that made his mouth turn into an ocean of saliva mixed with the pain of his grumbling stomach. He looked at the windows, the darkness interrupted by the streetlights filtered through the tiny holes of the blinders. The curtains closed, leaving a foggy view that made him sleepier than he already felt. But above all… He was starving.

He grabbed the blankets around him, covering his body with them as he stepped outside the bed, his feet clumsily searching through the floor to not make himself fall down as he tripped with things or the sheets.

He walked towards the living room, his eyes squinted with the light and his head heavy and spinning as his body felt like it was burning up, “Hello?” He asked with low energy.

Almost immediately, Akaashi emerged from the kitchen, “What are you doing here?” He asked with a frown.

Bokuto looked around in confusion, “I… I live here? What are you doing here?”

Akaashi sighed and walked back into the kitchen to continue cooking, “I came back… You’re sick… And useless when it comes to taking care of yourself.”

Bokuto approached him with slow steps, “I’m not useless, how do you know I’m useless?” He asked with dragged words.

Akaashi turned to him with dull eyes, observing his bare feet against the cold floor and his shaking body trying to fight the fever, “Just a hunch.” He replied sarcastically.

“Why did you leave?” Bokuto asked as he sat back against the counter.

Akaashi looked down at the pot where he cooked a deliciously smelling soup, his hand moving the wooden spoon while the other one turned the page on one of the many cooking books Bokuto had around, “Bokuto, you’re very are sick, go sit or lie down.”

Bokuto watched him, “Akaashi… Are you mad at me?”

Akaashi sighed and continued to cook, shaking his head every once in a while and stuttering words that never exited his mouth, “I… I think you should go lie down.”

Bokuto hung his head low and sighed, “Akaashi…”

He shook his head in protest, ready to complain once more, “Bokuto, go-”

“Keiji.” Bokuto interrupted him, his eyes fixed on him, and his heart beating fast in his chest not only with the fear of having done something that would upset Akaashi like setting up a meeting with the writer’s agent, but also because he had… For the first time… Said Akaashi’s first name out loud… And it felt so sweet, so amazing, his lips wanted to move again and again, repeating the same chords and pronouncing the same letters… “Keiji…”

Akaashi’s face was red, his eyes widened as he looked down at the pot. His hand frozen, lifting the wooden spoon in the air and trying to find the way to respond, “…What?”

Bokuto sighed, stepping behind him and wrapping his arms that held the sheets around Akaashi’s waist, enveloping him in the warmth of the silky clothing that surrounded them, and with the heat of his body, “I’m sorry… Please don’t be mad at me…”

“I’m not…” Akaashi mumbled, putting the spoon down and caressing Bokuto’s hands, “I’m not mad at you… Of course not…”

Bokuto rested his forehead against Akaashi’s shoulder, he could feel the cold touch of his skin against the feverous warmth his own body was emitting, “Then what’s wrong?”

Hesitation, continuous sighs and uncertainty, it all represented Akaashi at that very moment. He shrugged softly, not too much as so to let Bokuto rest his forehead against him, “I… I don’t know, okay? I need to think… I’m sorry…”

Bokuto put his arms around Akaashi’s thin hip, his big forearms surrounding him and pulling him closer than before, “You don’t have to say that… I just… I want you to be happy…”

Akaashi nodded and slowly turned around, putting his arms around Bokuto’s neck, almost getting on his toes to be able to reach, “And I am… I am happier than I’ve ever been… So now…” He took a deep breath, “Would you please shut up and go lie down?? You are seriously burning up.”

Bokuto whined with a smile on his lips, “Fineeee….” He sighed and began to walk away, “But can I stay in the living room?”

Akaashi thought about it, but with Bokuto’s puppy eyes he could do nothing but give in, “Okay… I’ll serve you dinner in a bit.”

Bokuto nodded and walked towards the couch, flopping down on it and slowly hugging the pillows that covered most of it. He loved pillows; if it was up to him… Which technically was… He would overflow his entire apartment with pillows.

He yawned and reached for the TV control, his fingers slowly moving through the buttons until he blindly found the one to switch it on. He searched through the channels, his mind not even focusing on the images or sounds.

Finally, he found a channel, one that made him freeze, stop his finger mid-air from pressing the button, paralyzed by who he was seeing on TV.

Oikawa Tooru; Iwaizumi’s boyfriend… The very same man who had caused so much heartache and anxiety to his best friend. The actor who had accidentally made his sexuality public revealing he was dating none other but Iwaizumi Hajime, bringing him into a spiral of press stalking, uncomfortable questions, and random appearances on topics in TV channels and magazines.

Bokuto watched the TV, he observed Oikawa’s tense position, the way he sat among his people answering all kinds of attacking questions. His smile never leaving his lips as his eyes grew more and more tired with each question… And finally… They asked about the scandal.

“Oikawa, are you here to deny everything? To tell us you never had a romantic affiliation with this Iwaizumi Hajime?” The reporter asked. Bokuto could feel the tension in his body, the indifference to his sickness and the need to find out what this actor was about to say.

He heard steps approaching, “Hey, so I made some soup because your throat barely lets you swallow but if you want me to make something…” Akaashi’s voice trailed off as he realized how focused Bokuto was, “Everything okay?” He asked looking back at TV and then at Bokuto.

“Wait…” Bokuto mumbled. He could see Oikawa’s hesitation, the way his simple response of –no- had confused everyone in the pressed conference. No what? He wasn’t denying their relationship? He wasn’t just going to deny it? What was he saying??

Bokuto could catch a glimpse of Kuroo’s reaction. The man who had become his friend only a few days before was now sitting there with his hands covering his face, his ears red and his body tense. Whatever Oikawa was trying to say… It wasn’t part of their plan.

He slowly sat up at the same time Akaashi put down the plates on the table in front of them and sat beside Bokuto. Their eyes focused on the TV as they silently watched.

“I’m… I’m sorry, no what?” The same person asked in the same confusion as everyone in the country was feeling.

Akaashi tilted his head towards Bokuto, but his eyes remained on the TV, “Isn’t that…”

“Iwaizumi’s boyfriend, yes…” Bokuto whispered, his eyes widened and his head throbbing.

The tension Bokuto could see through the screen and feel through his body, the worry for his friend and the need to reach for his phone and call him right away to protect him… All those things almost distracted him from what Oikawa was saying. 

“I'm here to clear some things up." The actor cleared his throat, "First, I'd like to confirm I will continue my career as an actor. Secondly, I'm announcing I will also step down from the position as the next CEO for the Shiratorizawa Agency, letting Ushijima Wakatoshi take the position instead, and finally..." He smiled softly, "I want to confirm my romantical involvement with Iwaizumi Hajime.”

“Holy shit…” Bokuto and Akaashi whispered at the same time, the air inside their lungs exiting their body as if they felt a mixture of relief and shock. They remained still, unsure of what to do next.

Suddenly, something clicked inside Bokuto’s mind, and he rose to his feet, almost tripping and falling down with the sheets. He managed to step away from the couch and towards his bedroom where he grabbed his cell phone and dialed Iwaizumi’s number.

It rang and rang, but then went straight to voicemail. He tried a few times more, his breathing desperate and his brain pulsing in his skull.

“Bokuto, calm down… I’m sure he’s okay.” Akaashi said from the couch, his knees on it and his body turned to him.

Bokuto shook his head as he searched through his contacts, “No, you don’t know him… He freaks out, he panics with every little thing. He’s like a scared bunny or something, I mean dating this guy was a trip for all of us because he was freaking out of his sole existence…” He shook his head once more as he pressed Kiyoko’s number, “He’s having some crisis.”

He waited, the tone on the other side felt almost as if it was panicking just as much as he was, and finally the call went through, “Bokuto, I’m watching it. Did he pick up?” Kiyoko answered.

“No.” Bokuto replied, he could feel the words stuck in his throat, “You think he’s okay? What if he’s not? Oh my god, I told him to give Oikawa a chance and now he’s not going to be okay and what if he does something stupid…”

“Bokuto, calm down.” Kiyoko ordered from the other side of the line, “He is fine… He isn’t some idiot you just met. He is probably having a crisis but he is fine. I will try calling him myself and then…” She stopped talking for a few seconds, “Bokuto, give me a second, Daichi is calling me on the other side.”

Bokuto waited, the ringing tone once more, driving him insane as he felt the guilt and paranoia overwhelm him. He was to blame for this… He was to blame for everything that had happened in his life and in everyone’s life. He was the reason everyone was sad and everyone-

“Bokuto. Stop freaking out.” Akaashi spoke this time, making him snap and come back to reality. He was standing right next to him, his hand on Bokuto’s shoulder, “What are they saying?” He whispered. 

Bokuto shook his head, “I… I don’t know, they are telling me to wait, she’s with Daichi on the other side and…” Bokuto shook his head, tears gathering in his eyes. It was too much for him to handle. The pressure, the responsibility… He wanted to crawl back in his bed and watch silly childish movies, or focus on the classes he had to prepare for his students…

Akaashi extended his hand, “Give me the phone…”

“…What?” Bokuto asked with confusion, “No, I have to talk to them…”

Akaashi sighed, his hand still in the air waiting for Bokuto to listen and obey, “I know, and I will talk to them… You’re sick and you look like your head is going to explode.”

Bokuto hesitated, he looked down at the phone and then up at Akaashi. Slowly, he gave him the phone and let him guide him towards the couch.

He watched Akaashi walk around the living room, the way he finished bringing the things to have dinner and how he kept the cellphone to his ear, waiting for Kiyoko to be done talking to Daichi.

“Hello.” He finally said, his tone slightly awkward, but his mind focused on getting things for Bokuto and sorting things out, “Yeah, no, I’m Akaashi… Yes, yes, the barista…” He smiled softly, but then hid his face from Bokuto as he realized he could be seen, “No, he’s sick.” He chuckled, “Yes, he has a fever, and his throat, how did you know?” He nodded, “I see… Okay… Yes… A meeting…?” He turned to Bokuto, examining him before taking a deep breath and nodding, “Yes, he will beg to go, so I will at leat accompany him if that’s alright?” He smiled and nodded, “Perfect, thank you Kiyoko, look forward meeting everyone.”

Bokuto watched him hang up and sigh before handing him back his phone and sitting next to him, “What happened? What did they say?” He asked almost desperately.

Akaashi leaned back and sighed, “Okay, I will tell you what happened and you will listen, and then we will have dinner, have a normal conversation, and then rest okay? If you really want to go to this meeting, you will have to rest, is that clear?”

Bokuto frowned, his lips pursed in complaint, but finally he nodded, “Fine….”

Akaashi nodded, “They haven’t been able to talk to Iwaizumi, but he is okay… All they know is he didn’t know Oikawa was going to do this, and they will spend the night texting and calling him to let him know about the meeting.” He crossed his arms, “Meanwhile, you will let them handle this and you will, as we agreed, rest.”

Bokuto looked around, he glanced down at the plate of soup Akaashi had prepared and then at the TV where they continued to discuss Oikawa and Iwaizumi’s situation. He hesitated, his shoulder shivering with cold and his headache worsening. He slowly nodded, “What… What movie do you want to watch while we have dinner?”

Akaashi moved forward, “It’s your pick…” He hesitated, his hand slowly moving up towards Bokuto’s head. His fingers slowly caressed his hair, putting it behind his red ears, “Take it easy, Bokuto… There’s nothing you can do in this state, so get well and then you will be able to protect Iwaizumi…”

Bokuto could feel his heart beating fast in his chest, he could feel his breathing fastening at the gentle touch of Akaashi. This was new to him… And it felt so good…

“And you have nothing to feel guilty about…” Akaashi continued, getting used to what he was doing and leaning closer towards Bokuto.

He turned to him in surprise, “Guilty?” Had he been saying those things out loud? The things he thought he had locked up in his mind… Had he spoken them out loud?

Akaashi looked at him in surprise, “You just have that look on you… The same look you have every time you do something for me… You feel responsible for everyone and you feel guilty when things don’t go well…”

Bokuto stared into his eyes, his lips tensing as he avoided letting them shake. How did he know all this? How could he have possibly noticed all those things? He could feel tears gathering in his eyes, he could feel his headache worsening as he avoided to cry… He looked away and sniffed, “I’m… I’m just childish.” He shrugged.

Akaashi giggled, “I know, but I like that.” He sighed, “So, what movie?” He asked standing up and walking towards the shelf covered in movies.

“Hmmm…” Bokuto hummed as he lied back, “What do you think about… Finding Neverland?”

Akaashi turned to him, “Again? You say you hate how much that movie makes you cry…”

Bokuto nodded, “I only say that when I’m already crying, but I love it…” He hid his face between the pillows.

Akaashi chuckled, “Fine, I’ll go get some tissues then…” He put the DVD inside and stood up to get the tissue box, “God knows it makes me cry like a baby as well…” He mumbled.

They sat together, first having their warm dinner, but then cuddling together; Akaashi distractedly running his fingers through Bokuto’s hair as they both sniffed as silently as they could, trying to watch the movie between their tears.

Bokuto loved that movie… And he knew why… He knew deep down it meant to him a lot more than anyone knew…

It meant a lot more to that child that died so long ago…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My goodness what a ride we have ahead of us... 
> 
> I hope you enjoyed it! Don't forget to let me know what you hated, loved or thought about Akaashi? I think he's changing a bit, dont you? And what about Bokuto? Who do you think that child that died was? And his story?? Oh my! I want to hear all you guys think about this chapter <333 it's been awfully quiet and im not sure if it's because of the lack of on-schedule updates or because it's summer but I sure miss hearing from you guys!! 
> 
> Also, have you watched Finding Nerverland? I definitely recommend it!! Although tissues are a must... I cry so much with it... 
> 
> Anyways, once again I am sorry for the crazy schedule, I will try to regain my health as fast as possible to be able to write as much as I've always wanted to! Dont forget I'm always available at both tumbls <333 Love you all!! 
> 
> http://sunshineparkacademy.tumblr.com/  
> http://ahominebaka.tumblr.com/


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